Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Analyzing Immigrant Pay Gaps & The Policies That Influence Them, Rebeca Perez, Prachi Jain

Honors Thesis

Despite making up 14% of the US population, little research has been done on pay gaps for immigrants, the majority of whom are Latin American immigrants. I analyze the effect of immigration on immigrants’ wages, specifically looking at the effects of region of birth, citizenship, and state immigration policies. I find that even when compared to natives with similar education, Latin American immigrants earn significantly less. Furthermore, while noncitizens earn less than natives and naturalized citizens earn more overall, Latin Americans face a larger penalty for noncitizenship and lower returns to citizenship. Finally, while living in Sanctuary and Anti-Sanctuary States …

Symbolic Leverage: Nominating (Non)Veiled Women As An Electoral Competition Strategy In Polarized Turkey, Elif Sari-Genc

Politics and Global Affairs Faculty Publications and Presentations

Do party elites strategically nominate (non)veiled women? While research exists on Muslim-minority countries, little is known about the dynamics of such strategies in Muslim-majority contexts, where the interplay of Islam, secularism, gender, and veiling is complex. To address this gap, I examine electoral competition in Turkey, investigating whether parties strategically nominate (non)veiled women for mayoral seats in opposing party strongholds to capitalize on the political symbols associated with women's identities — a strategy | term "symbolic leverage." Using an original dataset, elite interviews, and electoral discourse analysis, I find that parties leverage the symbolic value of veiled and nonveiled women …

Mitigating Agricultural Income Volatility: Evidence From Crop Insurance Adoption In India, Annoushqa Bobde

Master's Theses

Income volatility resulting from crop loss presents a significant threat to rural livelihoods in India, where nearly half of the workforce is employed in agriculture. This study examines the causal impact of crop insurance uptake on farm income using nationally representative data from the 70th and 77th rounds of the National Sample Survey, merged with satellite-derived climate data and Harmful Degree Days (HDD), which is used as a proxy for crop-damaging temperature. To address selection bias in insurance enrollment, Propensity Score Matching, Inverse Propensity Weighting, and a Two-Way Fixed Effects model are used. Results show that insurance uptake is associated …

Adolescents And Technology - The True Impact Of Tech, Paige A. Schaefer

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

With the rapid advancement and increasing accessibility of technology, research has begun to focus on the impacts technology use can have on adolescents. Many young people think they understand how to use technology, but they may not understand the impacts it can have on their life. By having an understanding of these implications, both positive and negative, they can adjust their technology habits to increase their quality of life and set themselves up for success in the future. This paper begins with a review of the literature about the relationship between adolescents and technology followed by a training made for …

Market Days For Older Adults: Addressing Healthy Aging Among A High-Risk Population At The Downtown Farmers’ Market, Allyson Brothers, India Luxton, Cheryl Noble, Sue Schneider, Alison O'Connor, Yuqin Jiao

Journal of Extension

Market Days for Older Adults is a Colorado State University Extension program that supplies low-income older adults with fresh produce purchased from market vendors at the local farmers’ market. Designed for low-income seniors, this program aims to enhance nutrition while building a sense of community and connection. Program evaluation data from the first four years of the program demonstrate evidence of program feasibility, including high levels of participant satisfaction and program utilization. We also assessed a set of healthy aging indicators (diet quality, social connection, functional health, and well-being) to drive future work. Implications for Extension professionals are discussed.

Parental Experience In 4-H And Its Effect On Youth Reenrollment, Jolynn Miller, Kendra Lewis, Jeannette Rea Keywood, Tim Ewers, Kali Trzesniewski, Sarah Hensley

Journal of Extension

Youth experience many benefits from participating in the 4-H program. It is unclear, however, what role parents play in their child’s reenrollment in the program. This study uses data from a multi-year multi-state study of youth retention in 4-H to examine the effects of parental expectations and experience on their intent to reenroll their child after their first year in 4-H. Results show a relationship between parental expectations and experiences on continued involvement. This study can be used to help 4-H programs recruit and retain more youth, as well as by other Extension programs to understand retention issues.

First Annual Advances In Business Education Conference 2025 Proceedings, Kelsey Metz, Joshua Ray

Advances in Business Education (ABE) Conference Proceedings

Conference Overview: The First Annual Advances in Business Education (ABE) Conference was held on May 16, 2025, at Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tennessee. Hosted by the LMU School of Business, the ABE Conference was established to promote teaching excellence through innovation and collaboration in business education. With a focus on fostering meaningful dialogue among educators, researchers, and students, the conference welcomed participants from across disciplines and institutions. The event was structured around three key tracks:

Pedagogy & Teaching Excellence: Showcasing innovative teaching methods and strategies for enhancing student learning and engagement.

Business Research: Presenting research focused on advancing knowledge …

Reason And All My Senses: Surveying The Post Enlightenment Frame Of Reason Through Contemporary Philosophy, Cognitive Psychology, And Cognitive Linguistics, Joshua T. Lowe Rev. Dr.

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

This dissertation argues that Christian theology and practice are aided and enriched by a more complete understanding of reason by surveying recent studies and views in theology, philosophy, cognitive psychology, and cognitive linguistics. Since the Enlightenment, Christian theology has assumed widely the Enlightenment model of human reason as ideally acontextual, that is, free from constraints of contexts, and therefore universal, that is, applicable in all contexts. Recent developments from a variety of perspectives challenge this model of rationality. Some challenge the acontextualism of the Enlightenment understanding by showing how it arose from and depends on a context, and that context …

Pedaling Toward Justice: Exploring The Role Of Community Advocacy In Shaping Bicycle Policy In Oakland., Claire Farrell Lowe

Master's Projects and Capstones

The way people move through a city fundamentally shapes their access to jobs, essential services, and economic and social opportunities. While Oakland’s bicycle infrastructure has improved over the past decade, vehicle-centric planning has historically sidelined cycling, creating mobility inequities. This thesis examines the role of community advocacy in advancing equitable bicycle planning and prioritizing cycling infrastructure as a core element of urban development. This thesis project follows the question: what role do advocacy groups play in addressing the gaps between the Oakland Bicycle Plan and its implementation? Through policy analysis, community engagement, and interviews with key informants from Bike East …

A Correlational Study Of The Relationships Between The Big Five Aspects Of Personality And Career Interest: Practical Implications For Teachers In Guidance Counseling Roles, Mary J. Haberman

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

Classroom teachers are often required to teach advisory courses that include career counseling and social emotional learning components. The author used a combination of personality and career assessments to guide students into careers that were a good fit, not only for their interests but their temperaments as well. This holistic approach to advising allowed the author to address a wide variety of personal issues (e.g., unmet needs) that students were having and help them to discover their own motivations for approaching these issues. While the study is focused on collecting information from working adults, the results of this study could …

Work Experience Of Millennials Resigning Abruptly From Mental Health Positions, Melonie K. Bland

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The phenomenon of millennials resigning from mental health positions with little or no notice remains understudied, yet understanding it is essential for improving the consistency and effectiveness of care for individuals receiving mental health services. This generic qualitative study explored the work experiences of millennial mental health workers. The Strauss-Howe generational theory served as the theoretical framework, offering insight into how millennials’ work ethics, personal beliefs, and job expectations influenced their decisions to resign abruptly. Data were collected through semistructured interviews with nine participants, and thematic analysis was used to identify key themes and insights related to the research question. …

Gender And Age Differences Among Juvenile Homicide Offenders, Amanda Nichole-Wells Jabaay

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The involvement of juveniles in homicide-related crimes has been a matter of growing public concern in the United States. Although prior research suggests that boys and girls who kill vary in important ways, there is limited research that has examined gender and age differences among juvenile homicide offender (JHO) characteristics and crime-related variables on a national level, with only eight previous national studies to date. Guided by the social control theory, the purpose of this non-experimental quantitative study was to explore gender and age differences among JHOs and other crime-related variables on a current national level. Archival data (N = …

The Effects Of Sudden Telework On The Productivity And Engagement Of Hr Employees, Lisa Renee Schlichtig

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The COVID-19 pandemic forced a change in how individuals perceived the way of conducting work in the United States. Human resources (HR) leaders need to understand this change because many employees lost their jobs without the means for sustainable work. Other employees maintained their jobs, suddenly shifting to telework, resulting in mixed productivity and work engagement levels. The purpose of this quantitative moderation analysis study was to examine whether there was a moderating effect of employer-provided psychological resources on perceived productivity and work engagement among HR employees after the sudden shift to telework. The conservation of resources theory and the …

The Politics Of Being Heard: Communication And Power Struggles In Hunters Point Naval Shipyard, Caroline Trejo

Master's Projects and Capstones

The environmental and public health challenges in Bayview-Hunters Point have catalyzed widespread community activism, as residents and advocates respond to the ongoing fallout from radiological contamination at the Hunters Point Naval Shipyard. Communication plays a vital role in bridging the gap between affected communities and government entities throughout the cleanup process. This research asks: how have the communication strategies of advocacy groups influenced government actions and policies during the Bayview-Hunters Point Shipyard cleanup? To explore this question, I conducted semi-structured interviews with three community advocates, two former members of a non-partisan civil jury, one independent researcher, and one government official. …

Having A Home To Come Home To: How Subsidized Housing Impacts Unhoused Pregnant Women, Stephanie O. Porvaznik

Master's Projects and Capstones

Community based organizations (CBOs) lead the charge in the fight to end housing insecurity and often must make up where local governments fall short. San Francisco is an example of a municipality that has a long history of addressing instances of housing insecurity for its residents, and where CBOs step in to provide housing support for populations with unique and special circumstances. One CBO that operates in San Francisco that I was interested in studying was the Homeless Prenatal Program (HPP), and the Jelani House, a housing subsidy that is funded and operated by the HPP for pregnant women who …

Gis And The 1944 U.S.–Mexico Treaty: Rethinking Transboundary Governance Under Climate And Demographic Stress, Pedro L. Sarabia

Master's Theses

This thesis examines the structural limitations of the 1944 U.S.–Mexico Water Treaty in the context of intensifying climate stress and growing population demand. Using GIS-based raster analysis of precipitation from 1981 to 2024, it maps hydrological trends in treaty-bound basins—particularly the Rio Grande and Lower Colorado—which exhibit persistently low and variable precipitation. These conditions, coupled with institutional rigidity, threaten the sustainability of binational water management. In addition to quantitative analysis, the study includes a qualitative assessment of transboundary governance dynamics, highlighting how institutional fragmentation and policy contention impede adaptive responses. The Treaty’s current surface-water-only framework excludes groundwater management, real-time data …

Unequal Shocks: The Heterogeneous Impact Of Earthquakes, Claire Marie James

Master's Theses

What effect does neighborhood wealth have on disaster outcomes and disaster induced migration? Using the 2023 Kahramanmaraş Earthquake in Southern Türkiye and Syria as a natural shock, I examine how the short term migration response to building damage and earthquake exposure differs by average neighborhood home prices. Using a panel dataset of population by bing tile, from Meta’s Data for Good Project, I employ time series and cross sectional regression analysis. I find that wealthy neighborhoods are better able to retain population than non-wealthy counterparts.

Weather Impacts On Migration And Food Insecurity In Bangladesh, Brendon M. Wong, Andrew Hobbs

Master's Theses

This paper analyzes the impact of weather shocks on household migration and food insecurity, and the mechanisms in which they do so. As climate change continues to impact weather patterns, subsistence farmers remain extremely vulnerable and can experience decreases in welfare. Using the Bangladesh Integrated Household Survey, we construct a panel dataset to measure the effects of temperature and rainfall on remittance amounts, food consumption scores, and child wasting z-scores. We observe that weather has strong impacts on these outcomes but are dependent on the rice variety and growing season. We do not find strong evidence that the mechanism in …

Downstream Delays: Effects Of Flooding On Childrens Education And Time Use In Peru, Miki Robert Izu

Master's Theses

Flooding is a major cause of destruction and economic loss affecting over 80 million people annually. Flooding during childhood can lead to educational setbacks with long term economic impacts. This study investigates the causal impacts of flood shocks on educational achievement and children's time use using the Young Lives Survey, a panel dataset surveying children in Peru over 19 years of childhood. This study finds that flooding causes a temporary positive "spike" in girls hours of labor immediately after a flood which subsides by three to six years after flooding. The additional hours of labor does not reduce hours of …

Climate Shocks, Crop Yields, And School Enrollment In Rural Ethiopia, Mallika Matharu

Master's Theses

This study investigates how climate-induced shocks to agricultural productivity affect school enrollment in rural Ethiopia. Using five waves of panel data from the Ethiopia Living Standards Measurement Study (LSMS) and satellite-derived weather indicators, I estimate the causal effects of crop yields, specifically Teff, Sorghum, and Maize, on children’s school attendance. To address the endogeneity of agricultural output, I instrument crop yields with agro-climatic measures such as growing degree days (GDD), harmful degree days (HDD), and soil moisture during the Meher growing season. The main empirical strategy uses a two-stage instrumental variable approach with region and wave fixed effects. Results suggest …

The Long-Term Effect Of Universities On Local Technology, Dafina Rizvanolli

Master's Theses

This paper studies the long-term effects of universities on local economic complexity, contributing to new evidence on how higher education institutions shape local productive capabilities over time. While extensive research documents universities’ positive impact on development, fundamental questions remain about the mechanisms through which they operate. Our study employs the Economic Complexity Index (ECI), a measure that captures the diversity and ubiquity of regional economic structures, to provide novel insights into universities’ influence on local economies. Building on Andrews (2023), we exploit historical natural experiments in university site selection during the 19^th and 20^th centuries in the U.S. …

Sustainability In Professional Sports: A New Nexus Of Profit And Social Responsibility, Matthew Teplitz

Master's Theses

The world is facing a climate crisis – corrective action that will improve our collective situation is needed, now. Those with the power to do so, in the capitalist structure under which we live, are largely the individuals, corporations, and governments with financial resources and the platform to inspire others to act. Two such entities, complete with the financial heft to make a difference and inspiration to spare, are North America’s National Basketball Association (NBA) and Spain’s La Liga. This thesis seeks to understand what distinguishes the NBA’s approach to sustainability from La Liga, and by employing each league as …

Mothers Who Homeschool: Experiences In Rural California, Kiah Combs

Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of mothers who homeschool

their children in the rural location of Shasta County, California (CA). This research was

guided by three research questions: 1) In what ways is the act of homeschooling a form

of resistance to existing power structures for mothers in a rural region in CA? 2) How

does the process of providing a homeschooling education for their children influence

mothers’ perceptions of themselves as confident and capable? 3) In what ways does

homeschooling allow mothers to offer their children an educational experience which

meets their unique needs …

Lack Of Access To Education And Economic Opportunities As Root Causes Of Youth Migration From The Western Highlands Of Guatemala, Alvaro Quinteros Gonzalez

Master's Theses

This thesis examines how the relationship between limited access to education and economic opportunities contribute to the migration of young people out of this region. The qualitative research addresses two main questions: a) What challenges do young people in the Western Highlands of Guatemala face in accessing the education system and employment opportunities? And b) How does the lack of education and economic opportunities influence young people’s decision to migrate? Three focus groups were conducted with young individuals from the western highlands, and six semi-structured interviews were held with stakeholders and organizations working in this region.

The thesis concludes that …

The Organizing Role Of Function Knowledge In Scene Schemas, Teresa P. Pham

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Schemata, or schemas, are conceptualized as “building blocks” of cognition that guide human information processing, object recognition, retrieval of memory, and more. Major work on schema theory was done in the 1970s, conceptualizing it as a useful framework for understanding how individuals organize knowledge and apply it to understand the world (e.g., Rumelhart, 1980). Research on schema theory has continued to have implications for reading comprehension, visual processing, and encoding and retrieval of memories. Despite the vast literature, the concept of schema itself remains loosely defined, with little consensus on how schemas are organized. This study explores whether function acts …

“Here For Everyone” (?): How Intimate Partner Violence Service Organizations Address Community Needs And Transgender Inclusion In The Deep South, Brian Tesch

Theses and Dissertations

Transgender individuals face disproportionately high rates of intimate partner violence (also known as IPV) when compared to other sociodemographic groups. Despite this prevalence, IPV service organizations in the Deep South (e.g., Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and South Carolina), a region of the U.S. encompassing several rural communities and characterized by traditional gender norms and conservative Christian religious values, may have difficulties meeting the unique needs of transgender IPV survivors. This dissertation explores two key areas: (1) the perceptions of IPV service organization staff members in the Deep South concerning how their agencies assist members of the transgender community, and (2) …

Exploring Extension Agents' Understandings Of Local And Resilient Food Systems, Hannah Dankbar, Brooke Matusko

Journal of Extension

Currently, there is a focus on bolstering local food systems to support overall food system resilience. Local and resilient food systems, though related, are distinct concepts. Their use in food system development is complicated by varying interpretations. Data from a survey of North Carolina Extension agents, a group of food system practitioners, identified a range of definitions of these terms. The results underscore the complex landscape of local food system development and identify a need to build on conceptual understandings within the Extension community and establish shared understandings within food system development efforts.

A Systematic Literature Review Of The Implementation Of High-Quality Instructional Materials (Hqims) In K-12 Education, Melanie Jackson

Theses and Dissertations

The implementation of High-Quality Instructional Materials (HQIMs) in K–12 education is essential for promoting equitable and effective learning outcomes. Additionally, HQIMs ensure that students are engaged with grade-level material, which is critical for achieving mastery of grade-level standards, thereby fostering deeper understanding and academic success across all student populations. However, challenges such as misalignment with curriculum standards, insufficient professional development, limited teacher buy-in, and resource disparities continue to hinder successful implementation. This study aims to examine these barriers and identify evidence-based strategies to support effective HQIMs implementation. Specifically, this research seeks to answer the question: "What are the key factors …

Russia In The Mena Region: Why Do States Draft Defense Cooperation Agreements With Non-Contiguous States?, Laurel Jayes

Theses and Dissertations

This paper investigates the reasons behind the disparity in the signing of Defense Cooperation Agreements (DCAs) among MENA countries. Western sanctions and financial dependence on Russia are the two primary factors used in the research to evaluate scenarios using a Boolean method and a Most Similar Systems Design (MSSD). While states that depend on Russian energy exports may align more closely with Moscow for strategic and economic gains, the paper examines how states under Western sanctions frequently look to Russia for alternative security relationships. Case studies that illustrate the circumstances under which MENA states seek formal defense connections with Russia …

Designing An Instructional Coaching Model For Residency-Based Alternate Route Teacher Candidates In Mississippi To Improve Instructional Competencies And Self-Efficacy, Lamareshia Daoma Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

Alternate route teachers are adult learners who enter the teaching profession through nontraditional pathways, often without formal training in education. While they bring diverse experiences and a commitment to student success, they frequently face challenges in translating theoretical knowledge into effective classroom practice. Research indicates that instructional coaching serves as a critical bridge between pedagogical theory and practical application, providing job-embedded professional development that enhances instructional competencies. At its core, instructional coaching is a collaborative partnership built on trust and respect, offering teachers a supportive space to reflect on their practice, receive targeted feedback, and develop their professional identity. Alternate …