Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Academic Entitlement: Why Gen Z Students Believe They Deserve Good Grades For Academic Success Regardless Of Their Performance, Clinton Stephen Mawusi

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This thesis explores how Generation Z college students at Northern Illinois University (NIU) understand, negotiate, and express academic expectations and experiences, particularly concerning their sense of academic entitlement. Drawing from semi-structured interviews with 20 full-time undergraduate students across diverse academic disciplines, this qualitative study employed Braun and Clarke’s (2006) six-phase thematic analysis approach to identify patterns in students’ perspectives on grades, effort, and faculty relationships. The findings reveal detailed tensions between students’ desire for recognition of effort and their awareness of institutional standards of academic merit. Participants shared insights into classroom interactions, grading policies, use of campus resources, and the …

Causal Attributions Of Social Rejection And Acceptance Following Childhood Emotional Abuse, Laura Ong

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Childhood emotional abuse is a relatively common form of childhood maltreatment that has been associated with adverse impacts spanning numerous diagnostic categories. Maladaptive interpersonal processes appear to be implicated in the pathway from childhood emotional abuse to later psychopathology. Rejection sensitivity, in particular, has demonstrated a strong association with emotional abuse and appears to mediate the relationship between emotional abuse and depression. However, several authors have challenged the prevailing understanding of rejection sensitivity as a unidimensional, trait-like construct, and more detailed exploration is needed to understand the unique cognitive and affective processes that drive maladaptive responses to rejection following emotional …

Mindful Parenting And Child Outcomes: Examining Potential Mediators, Riley Laffoon

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Incorporating themes from general mindfulness practices, the concept of mindful parenting teaches parents to bring present centered attention and awareness to their interaction with their child. For parents of all children, but especially children who may exhibit more challenging behaviors or attention deficit/hyperactive symptoms, the practice of mindful parenting may be especially useful. Using data collected from parents of children ages 5-8 (n = 179), results of the current study suggest significant positive associations between mindful parenting and supporting good behavior and limit setting, and a negative association with parental over-reactivity. Parent emotion regulation served as a mediator between mindful …

Cultural Model Of Indigenous Custom Marriage, Maria G. Stapleton

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This thesis examines and documents the tradition of Indigenous Custom Marriage (ICM) practiced in a semi-rural community in central Mexico. The arrival of Spaniards to Mesoamerica during the sixteenth century brought new forms of marriage to the region, those of the Christian religion and of the Spanish crown’s laws. While these new forms slowly gained acceptance, the traditional pre-Hispanic Mesoamerican form of getting married has endured over the intervening centuries up through the present. This traditional form of marriage is not monolithic, but shows variation across the diverse ethnic groups, communities, and geographic regions of Mesoamerica. The community studied, Tlanalapa, …

Rise Or Retreat: The Role Of Appraisal And Goal Orientations In Leader Engagement, Haleigh Broucher

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation examines how leaders psychologically interpret developmental challenges as threats or challenges, and how these interpretations shape engagement. Furthermore, I propose that these processes are shaped by mastery-approach and mastery avoidance orientations. Study 1 manipulated the presence of developmental challenges to test causal pathways. Results indicated that developmental challenges increased threat appraisal but not challenge appraisal, and threat was negatively associated with absorption. Study 2 found the opposite pattern: challenge appraisal, not threat appraisal, explained engagement. Relative importance analysis showed that challenge appraisal accounted for nearly all explained variance in engagement (97.6%). There was no significant moderation of mastery …

Learning Through Following: The Role Of Social Foraging In Juvenile Saddleback Tamarin (Leontocebus Weddelli Weddelli) Development In The Department Of Pando, Bolivia, Meghan E.F. Hanson

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Across the primate order, the juvenile stage is an important period of development that transitions individuals from infancy to adulthood. During the juvenile stage, individuals are weaned but lack experience feeding and foraging on solid foods. As a result, juveniles must learn foraging and feeding skills during this vital period of growth and development. The purpose of this study is to assess how juvenile saddleback tamarins (Leontocebus weddelli) gain foraging and food manipulation skills. During this study, I observed feeding behaviors in a group containing two juveniles and four adults, located at the Estación Biológica Tahuamanu in the Department of …

Yoga As A Self-Care Practice For Mental Health Counselors Who Treat Trauma, Kari Michelle Fitzgerald

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Given the high rates of burnout and compassion fatigue among trauma-exposed counselors, understanding effective self-care practices is critical for sustaining clinical effectiveness and well-being. Utilizing Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), exploration of the lived experiences of licensed mental health counselors who treat trauma and use yoga as a self-care practice was conducted. Eight participants who were regular yoga practitioners each participated in one semi-structured interview and submitted one pre- and one post-interview reflective journal entry. Thematic analysis was used to identify six major themes; 1) emotional impact and sacred responsibility of clinical work, 2) yoga as a regulating and restorative practice, …

The Emotional Burden Of Teaching: Understanding And Addressing Secondary Traumatic Stress In Middle School Teachers, Lisa Marie Lazansky-Roach

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Secondary traumatic stress (STS) has been extensively documented in helping professions such as healthcare and social work, but its impact on teachers, particularly middle school educators in high-need, low-income districts, remains underexplored. This three-manuscript dissertation examines the prevalence, predictors, and support of STS in this population.

The first study uses a quantitative survey to measure STS severity among 6th–8th grade teachers to assess how it relates to demographic characteristics, including age, gender, race/ethnicity, and teaching experience. Results indicate that a substantial proportion of teachers experience moderate to severe STS, with race emerging as a significant predictor. The second study analyzes …

The Long Border: The Politics U.S. Immigration Policy Makes, John Peter Hansberry

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This thesis examines how the structural context of presidential leadership influences immigration policy outcomes, with a focus on the interplay between a president’s political regime position and the level of legislative gridlock. Drawing on the American Political Development tradition, this study integrates regime theory, congressional gridlock research, and scholarship regarding executive power to formulate a framework of presidential strategic choice. Seven U.S. presidencies are analyzed as case studies: Lyndon B. Johnson, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama, representing diverse regime affiliations and degrees of partisan polarization. This thesis shows that …

Three Essays On Asset Pricing And Risk Factors, Yuzhou Liu

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation explores whether alternative economic and financial factors serve as risk factors in asset pricing. It consists of three essays that examine policy uncertainty, macroeconomic expectations, and accounting-based factors in asset pricing models. The first essay studies the shocks in U.S. Economic Policy Uncertainty (EPU) index and its categorical indices. Shocks in monetary policy uncertainty and sovereign debt/currency crisis policy uncertainty significantly price assets and earn significant premiums. The second essay distinguishes expected (ex-ante) and realized (ex-post) macroeconomic factors using a state space model via Kalman filter. Ex-ante economic activity are significantly priced along with ex-post size, ex-post and …

Climate Migration And Urban Survival: Evidence From Chittagong’S Slums, Mohammad Nur Nobi

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This study examines the impact of climate change on rural-to-urban migration in Chittagong, Bangladesh. Based on a primary survey of 400 respondents across 35 slums in the country's second-largest city, the analysis employs two estimation methods: a multinomial logit model to assess the influence of climate-related factors on migration decisions, and a logit model to evaluate the impact of migration on the living conditions of migrants. The results show that individuals involved in ‘agriculture and daily labor’ are most likely to migrate. Compared to the base category (‘Other Reasons’) for migration, the odds ratios for ‘floods’, ‘droughts’, and ‘better job …

Examining The Role Of Affective Arousal In Future-Choice Processing, Justine Sara Rivard

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Humans employ different processes of decision-making, depending on a variety of factors including the temporal situation of the potential outcome. This study proposes a hybrid, dual-systems theoretical model of future-choice making, with an arousal-based switch as the main predictor of the decision-making process employed. Using a sample of 120 undergraduate participants, this relationship was explored using an episodic future-thought cue, paired with a temporal-discounting task in the same timeframe. Response times were measured to identify which of the proposed decision-making processes were employed, as well as temporal discounting rates for each participant. An ANOVA showed that there was no significant …

Does Fairness Shape Environmental Attitudes? Evidence From Nigeria’S Extractions, Isaiah Chukwudi Samuel

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This thesis argues that citizens’ perceptions of fairness in the distribution of natural resource revenues influence their support for environmental regulation in Nigeria. The analysis shows that individuals who perceive revenue distribution as fair are more likely to back environmental policies. Utilizing data from Afrobarometer Round 9, this study employs logistic regression to assess this relationship while controlling for demographic and attitudinal factors, including age, education, urban residency, climate awareness, trust in government, and party affiliation. The results demonstrate a strong and statistically significant relationship between perceived fairness and support for environmental regulation, even after isolating these variables. Overall, the …

Simulated Efficiency Of A Modified Bmw I3 Traction Motor Operating As An Isolated Dc-Dc Converter, Shayne Taylor

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Battery electric vehicles are currently fighting to have any advantage over internal combustion engine powered vehicles to reduce global transportation greenhouse gas emissions. Electric motors are typically deemed as the largest source of loss in many vehicles but have recently become more efficient on average than the AC-DC converter used to charge the vehicle. This paper investigates the potential for a dual three phase electric traction motor based on a BMW i3 electric vehicle traction motor to take the place of an isolated DC-DC converter, an important part of the AC-DC converter. This electric machine in simulations produced a similar …

A Learning History Of A State Physical Activity Plan, Jessica Nicole Riffee

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Physical inactivity remains a persistent public health concern in the United States, disproportionately affecting rural populations like West Virginia. To address statewide physical activity challenges, West Virginia developed one of the nation’s first state level physical activity plans, ActiveWV: 2015, that was revised to ActiveWV: 2030. Limited research has investigated how statewide physical activity plans unfold over time or how stakeholder learning can drive improvement.

This dissertation employed a learning history action research methodology to construct a collective narrative of the development, dissemination, implementation, and evaluation activities across both iterations of the West Virginia Physical Activity Plan. Reflective interviews with …

For Her Horror: Sociopsychological Gratifications Obtained By Fem Fans Of The Slasher, Brooke Eaglesong Wilson

Masters Theses

Those who side with the unjustified killer in slasher films are doing so to fulfill sociopsychological needs that are not being met in social reality. There were three main findings found in this study. First, participants sided with the unjustified killer in slasher films to gratify needs that were not being fulfilled in their careers such as the need to perform without having to consult mentors, not unlike how the unjustified killer murders victims without discussing with others. Second, participants sided with the unjustified killer in slasher films to gratify needs in their romantic relationships such as the need to …

Understanding First-Generation College Students’ Perceptions Of Sorority Recruitment, Megan Morecraft

Masters Theses

This study explores first-generation college students’ discovery of sororities, influences for going through a recruitment process, and motivations for selection. There is a gap in the literature when it comes to first-generation college students and greek organizations, specifically sororities, and this study aides in bridging the gap and providing information regarding strategies for recruitment and marketing practices. With more informed practices on first-generation student populations, an increased quality of marketing and programming could be implemented, as well as retention. This study and its findings allow for more intentionality and enhancements to occur, especially when promoting the greek experience and sorority …

Construct Validity Of The Cognitive Assessment System- 2nd Edition: Rating Scale: Comparisons With The Learning Behaviors Scale, Cameron Graham

Masters Theses

Cognitive assessment instruments, such as the Cognitive Assessment System Second Edition: Rating Scale (CAS2: Rating Scale), are frequently utilized by school psychologists to assess children’s cognitive abilities and psychopathology. However, the CAS2 and the CAS2: Rating Scale have little research regarding their psychometric properties. The present thesis examined the construct validity of the CAS2: Rating Scale in comparison to the Learning Behaviors Scale (LBS). Canivez and Gaboury (2013), while assessing the construct validity of the CAS, found that for the ADHD group, the LBS Attitude Toward Learning, Attention/Persistence, and Strategy/Flexibility scores and the CAS Planning and Attention scores were significantly …

Emotion Regulation And Social Support As Protective Factors To The Associations Between Adverse Childhood Experiences And Mental Health-Related Issues, Cassidy B. Mccarthy

Masters Theses

This study was designed to examine emotion regulation and perceived availability of social support as possible protective factors to the relationship between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and mental health issues. The study explored both emotion regulation difficulties and perceived availability of social support (PASS) as mediators to the relationship between ACEs and mental health issues. Emotion regulation difficulties were also assessed as a mediator between PASS and mental health issues. PASS was tested as a moderator between ACEs and mental health issues by affecting emotion regulation.

Results indicated that emotion regulation and PASS each partially mediated the relationship between ACEs …

A Multitude In The In-Between: The Impact Of Perceived Social Support On Resilience For Neurodivergent And Gsd Identities, Along With Barriers To Receiving Support, Theo Edwards

Masters Theses

This study used intersectionality theory to examine how overlapping minority identities impact receiving social support and the cultivation of resiliency. Individuals who identify as in the Gender and Sexually Diverse (GSD) community or the neurodivergent (ND) community may experience unique stressors due to various barriers to support. Overlap of GSD and ND identities can present added struggles. Information from 46 GSD and/or ND college students was collected through self-report scales and recorded interviews to examine the effects of perceived social support on resiliency. Also assessed were common values in social support like having someone to talk to and being understood, …

Effects Of Perceived Procedural Justice On The Relationship Between Visa Application Outcome And Psychological Distress: Evidence From Ghanaians And Nigerians Applying For U.S. Student Visas, Harriet Swanzy-Baffoe

Masters Theses

Visa interviews are not just bureaucratic processes; they can have significant psychological effects on applicants. This study examined the impact of U.S. student visa outcomes on psychological distress among West African applicants, with particular attention to perceptions of procedural justice during the interview process. The study surveyed 203 Ghanaian and Nigerian individuals who had previously applied for a U.S. student visa. Psychological distress was measured using the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R), and perceptions of fairness were measured with a custom-developed Procedural Justice Scale. Independent samples t-tests showed that denied applicants reported significantly higher distress, although elevated symptoms were also …

Barriers To Leisure-Time Physical Activity Among College Students, Ben Andrew Winfield

Masters Theses

Obesity is an increasing problem worldwide. In general, people eat more and exercise less, with a lot of individuals not meeting World Health Organization recommendation of 150-300 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity or 75-150 minutes of vigorous-intensity physical activity weekly. At times, individuals may face barriers which prevent or inhibit their ability to participate in leisure-time physical activity (LTPA), exercise completed in one’s free time. These barriers are known as leisure constraints and are comprised of three categories: intrapersonal, feelings and psychological aspects; interpersonal, relationship aspects; and structural, physical aspects. Body image, the perception individuals have about their bodies and …

Assessing The Feasibility Of The Virtual Reality Training Protocol For Sport, Jarad A. Lewellen

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Research has supported the use of virtual reality (VR) in sport to train skills such as decision-making and anticipation, as well as aid in injury rehabilitation. Despite this, VR is not commonly used as a training tool in sport. Barriers to its adoption include a lack of understanding, low awareness, and risk of cybersickness. As such, there is a critical need to address these barriers and promote acceptance of VR in sport. The purpose of this single-arm, non-randomized, mixed-methods feasibility trial was to examine the feasibility and acceptability of the Virtual Reality Training Protocol for Sport (VRTPS), which was designed …

Role Of Interpretation Bias Related To Pain In A Dental Setting, Jeongwi An

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Studies of interpretation bias related to pain have consistently shown that patients with pain are more likely to interpret ambiguous stimuli as related to pain than healthy control participants. This phenomenon is associated with pain and related outcomes, including depression, anxiety, and avoidance behaviors, suggesting a potential target in pain management. This study aimed to examine whether the association between interpretation bias, pain, and emotional status can be replicated in a dental care population. The relation of interpretation bias to pain experience was tested in a naturalistic anxiety and pain-provoking setting (i.e., root canal treatment, RCT). A total of 82 …

Group Flow Perceptions And Dynamics As Compared To Taxonomy And Integrative Group Flow Theory, Karen E. Wirick

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study investigated group flow through a team-building exercise with 18 professionals, examining participants’ and an observer’s perceptions of flow in social contexts. Analysis of interviews and observer notes identified eight themes: Sensory Network of Shared Experience, Adaptive Group Identity and Performance, Goal-Skill-Motivation Alignment, Essential Social Dynamics, Calm Intensity, Synchrony and Engagement Patterns, Spontaneous Collective Celebration, and Observer Integration. These themes revealed that flow in groups manifests as dynamic forces in constant motion. When compared to an emergent Taxonomy and the Integrative Group Flow Theory (IGFT), findings aligned more closely with IGFT's conceptualization of flow as a holistic balancing …

Insect Foraging Behaviors Across Habitat Types In Weddell’S Saddle-Back Tamarins, (Leontocebus Weddelli Weddelli) In Pando, Bolivia, Brianna Nicole Abba

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Researchers assume that small-bodied primates like the callitrichines are highly adaptable to environmental change and can increase their consumption of insects in disturbed habitats, however, these assumptions have rarely been tested. To better understand how habitat and other factors may influence the frequency of insect foraging, the type of prey capture techniques used, and prey capture success, I collected detailed observational data on one group of Weddell’s saddle-back tamarins (Leontocebus weddelli weddelli) in northwestern Bolivia in July and August 2022. I found that tamarins spent 62% of their total foraging and feeding time on insects. They spent 89% of their …

The Roles Of Parental Self-Efficacy And Educational Instrumental Support In Predicting Academic Motivation And Reading Skills Among Students With Adhd Symptoms, Saheli Anil

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Attention-deficit/Hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms can manifest early in a child's life and can result in detrimental outcomes in education if left unaddressed. Often, children with ADHD symptoms tend to experience low levels of academic motivation (Smith & Langberg, 2018; Volpe et al., 2006). However, previous research has established that parents with high levels of self-efficacy for helping their children academically and parental educational instrumental support tend to predict greater educational outcomes. The current study examined whether both mothers’ and fathers’ support and mothers’ self-efficacy influenced the associations between child ADHD symptoms, academic motivation, and reading in a sample of 181 …

Effect Of Universal Health Coverage On Neonatal Mortality Rate In Sub-Saharan Africa: Addressing Missing Data In Health Indicators, Elizabeth Nalule Arihoona

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This study utilizes two mixed-effects models to examine the effect of Universal Health Coverage on Neonatal Mortality Rate (NMR) in 30 countries of Sub-Saharan Africa from 2000-2019 while addressing the missing data in health indicators. Using natural cubic spline interpolation, I impute the missing values in the health coverage indices to preserve the location- specific trends of the data. Findings indicate that among the health Coverage indices, only Index1, which directly relates to coverage of maternal, newborn and child health services is significantly associated with reduced NMR. While higher Current Health Expenditure is associated with reduced NMR, a higher share …

Spatial Temporal Patterns Of Us Landslides In Recent Decades And Climate Change, Karissa Duff

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The frequency and intensity of extreme rainfall events are on the rise in recent decades around the world due to climate change and the trend is projected to continue. Intensified rainfall is a well-known trigger for landslide hazards. The impact of climate change on landslide hazards is a research question of practical importance, as landslides can cause billions of dollars in damage and significant loss of human lives annually. However, previous studies have often focused on specific events with limited spatial and temporal scales. Here we report our preliminary results of leveraging modern geospatial statistical tools in GIS using both …

Hurts So Good: An Exploration Of Benign Masochism And Other Motivations Toward Discomfort, Cody T. Gibson

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Benign masochism describes the tendency for individuals to seek discomfort for enjoyment andis frequently measured by the self-reported enjoyment of various experiences thought to involve mild levels of discomfort. Although research suggests individuals engage in uncomfortable experiences because they enjoy discomfort, research on benign masochism rarely considers other motivations individuals might have. Pilot testing (N = 81), exploratory factor analysis (N = 442), and confirmatory factor analysis (N = 363) were conducted using three rounds of data collection using U.S. participants on CloudResearch’s Connect platform, resulting in a 28-item scale for benign masochism. Six factors—benign masochism, identity, limitations, affiliation, growth, …