Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

“Am I A Criminal?”: How College Students Conceptualize Misconduct And Crime, Talia J. Norby

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Institutions of higher education play a critical role in regulating student behavior; however, existing research has given limited attention to how students themselves interpret conduct addressed through campus disciplinary systems. The present study examined how college students differentiate institutional misconduct from crime in university settings and whether those judgments are associated with perceptions of institutional legitimacy. Data was collected through an online Qualtrics survey administered to 146 students at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Participants were presented with six vignette-based scenarios depicting campus-relevant behaviors and asked to classify each as criminal or non-criminal, rate its perceived severity, and identify …

Soft Skills In The Workplace: A Comparative Analysis, Meg Rothfuss

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Soft skills are defined as any non-technical ability related to how you do your work. While hard skills are commonly thought of first when it comes to job responsibilities, soft skills are increasingly important to the success of any role. Soft skills can be broken into the broad categories of cognitive, interpersonal, and intrapersonal skills. The goal of this study was to define the soft skill profiles of different industries and compare the similarities and differences across industries. To do this, an interview and survey were conducted including employees from a variety of industries. The interviews compared the IT and …

Utilizing Brain Computer Interfaces That Interact With A Virtual Keyboard, Skye Lilienthal

Honors Theses

A brain-computer interface (BCI) can allow someone to utilize electrical signals in their brain to complete tasks using a computer. BCIs can help people take advantage of technology to type without the need for a traditional keyboard setup. This paper used the OpenBCI Mark IV to test the effectiveness of non-invasive BCIs with dry electrodes within the OpenViBE P300 Speller. This paper shows how to use the P300 speller through a setup pipeline. Results indicate that electrode placement affects P300 accuracy and that areas related to visual processing improve accuracy, suggesting that P300 signals can be detected within OpenBCI Mark …

Social And Economic Identity As Predictors Of Voter Support For Government Poverty Spending And Redistribution In Mississippi: A Study Of Mississippi Poll Responses, Alexandra L. Williams

Honors Theses

This study examines the factors that shape voters’ opinions on government spending for the poor in Mississippi, with particular attention to the roles of sex, race, party identification, income, and education. Drawing on pooled data from the 2010, 2012, and 2014 Mississippi Polls conducted by Dr. Steve Shaffer and the Mississippi State University Social Science Research Center, this research employs both bivariate and multivariate analyses to evaluate how social (demographic) and economic variables influence political attitudes toward poverty-related government spending.

The findings indicate that both social and economic variables play meaningful roles in shaping political preferences. Women and Black Mississippians …

Being Scared In A Secondary Universe: Experiencing The Self Through The Horror Film, Emily C. Hueser

Media and Cultural Studies Honors Projects

This paper explores the horror film as a site of self-creation. Using Michel Foucault and Maurice Merleau-Ponty, I argue that the horror genre primes the viewer for an embodied, affective experience, and the resulting interaction between self and screen constitutes and redefines the self. By engaging with Jordan Peele’s Get Out, David Cronenberg’s Videodrome and The Fly, and Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance, I explore how horror films engage our physical bodies and rework our experience and understanding of race, disability, and collectivity. These interactive experiences of filmviewing allow us to conceptualize the cinema as a tangible site of identity creation, …

Ai-Assisted Case Conceptualization: Enhancing Ethical Decision-Making In Graduate Counseling Education, Thang S. Tran, Praveen K. Rudra, Justin Jacques

Journal of Educational Leadership in Action

As artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly integrated into counselor education, a significant gap exists between the rapid adoption of technology and the development of structured pedagogical frameworks for ethical decision-making. This article introduces a multi-component framework to support ethical AI integration in graduate counseling education, comprising three key elements: (1) a case conceptualization model with AI assistance, (2) Morgan (SC), an intentionally imperfect AI school counseling thought partner trained on ethical standards and decision-making models, and (3) structured protocols for ethical decision-making aligned with American Counseling Association and National Board for Certified Counselors guidance. The framework is designed to center …

Barriers To Justice: A Comparative Analysis Of Barriers To Legal Aid Across Missouri Counties, Grace Fentress

Political Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

This study explores the complexity of the issue of legal aid and specifically the disparity in access to it across the state of Missouri’s counties, as they represent 115 different counties with diverse demographics throughout the state. By examining the number of legal aid organizations, funding levels, eligibility thresholds and geographical barriers, this study aims to identify what underlying factors contribute to disparities in legal accessibility. It is critical to address this question as the need for legal services is ever present and it is important that everyone has access to adequate representation. The findings of this study would ultimately …

The Supreme Court, Regime Politics, And Federalism: From The New Deal To The Trump Era, J. Mitchell Pickerill, Lilly A. Pickerill

Northern Illinois University Law Review

In the 1990s, the conservative majority on the Rehnquist Court championed state sovereignty and autonomy in a series of cases some commentators dubbed a “federalism revolution.” The Supreme Court crafted constitutional doctrines under the Commerce Clause, Tenth and Eleventh Amendments, and Section Five of the Fourteenth Amendment that limited federal powers while protecting or bolstering state powers. The Court’s doctrines in those cases diverged from its approach to constitutional federalism since the New Deal in the 1930s, but it tracked with the conservative Republican political agenda promoting a “new federalism” going back to Presidents Nixon and Reagan. However, as the …

Trinities In World Mythology: Why Separate Cultures Construct The Same Cosmology, Autumn Scott

Undergraduate Fellows' Research

Numerous cultures throughout the world construct mythologies and cosmologies which include a triad, triple deity, or three world cosmology. Specifically, this refers either to belief in a singular deity with three forms, belief in a distinct group of three divine beings with a common characteristic, or belief in three cosmic realms, such as the human world, underworld, and divine world. This phenomenon occurs within Europe, South Asia and East Asia, as well as North America. While many may be familiar with the Greek Moirai and the Christian trinity, this pattern appears well beyond the ancient and medieval cultures who inhabited …

How Does The Rise Of Ai-Generated Media Influence Public Trust In Audiovisual Communication?, Danny Mathew

Communications and Digital Media Theses

This study examines how the rise of AI-generated media influences public trust in audiovisual communication. As artificial intelligence technology advances, they have become capable of producing highly realistic images and videos that challenge traditional assumptions about the credibility of audiovisual media. This research uses a qualitative visual content analysis to compare AI-generated and authentic audiovisual content shared on social media platforms, specifically on platforms such as Instagram and Facebook. A dataset of 30 media samples was evaluated using a structured coding framework that evaluated visual realism, facial and visual inconsistencies, contextual presentation, indicators of AI generation, and perceived credibility. The …

Radio, Consumer, And Information Flow In The Digital Divide, Tajie Mcleod

Master of Public Administration for Senior Leadership

The persistence of the digital divide continues to limit equitable access to information, despite widespread advances in digital communication technologies. This study examines the role of broadcast radio in influencing consumer behavior and facilitating information dissemination among underserved populations. Using a mixed-methods approach, the research synthesizes qualitative and quantitative findings to analyze patterns of access, trust and media engagement. Results indicate that radio remains a highly accessible and trusted medium, particularly within communities with limited digital access, and that its influence is strengthened through localized content and parasocial relationships with in-air personalities. However, the effectiveness of radio is reduced when …

Increase Of Corporate Offices In Worcester, Ma, Francisco Hernandez

Master of Public Administration for Senior Leadership

The city of Worcester currently located in the heart of Massachusetts, benefits from a strategic position with access to multiple highways connecting various states and cities. With 12 colleges in the area, the city attracts a diverse workforce with varied backgrounds and experience. However, Worcester faces a challenge in increasing its professional workforce by attracting businesses to establish headquarters within the city. While Worcester offers lower costs for setting up offices compared to Boston, businesses often still gravitate towards Boston due to its more developed infrastructure and higher income and education levels. Boston currently serves as a hub for various …

Soft Life Or Survival? The Digital Rebranding Of Black Womanhood In Online Culture, Elizabeth Revangil

Communications and Digital Media Theses

This thesis examines how Black women are using digital media, specifically the popular social media platform, TikTok, to redefine femininity through the soft life SOFT LIFE OR SURVIVAL 2 movement. Historically, Black womanhood has been tied to strength, resilience, and survival, leaving limited space for softness and emotional vulnerability. This tends to create unrealistic expectations, and an undeniable societal pressure on Black women to perform. In recent years, social media has created opportunities for Black women to challenge these expectations and present alternative definitions of the Black women identity, reshaped around peace, emotional well-being, and softness instead of strength. Using …

Rise To The Top! Student Focus Group, Camryn Thompson

Institute for Disability Studies

No abstract provided.

Job Exploration Counseling, Annie Q. O'Reilly

Institute for Disability Studies

No abstract provided.

Place-Based Scholarship Utilization And Urban Black Males, Nkenge Amir Bergan

Dissertations

Despite the expansion of place-based scholarship programs across the United States, Black males from urban communities remain significantly underrepresented in post-secondary enrollment. Though these scholarships are designed to provide expanded or universal access to higher education, Black males disproportionately underutilize this financial resource. This qualitative investigation examines the lived experiences, perceptions, and contextual factors influencing Black males’ decisions regarding place-based scholarship utilization and college attendance.

This study, grounded in Critical Race Theory (CRT) and self-efficacy theory, employs a qualitative design to explore participant experiences. Participants are recruited through outreach to local alumni networks and community organizations, with eligibility limited to …

A Phenomenological Study Of Black College Students’ Belonging Built Through Meaningful Interactions With Black Staff At Predominantly White Institutions, Katelyn A. Hanley Semelbauer

Dissertations

The purpose of this phenomenological study is to explore how Black students at Predominantly White Institutions (PWIs) describe meaningful interactions with Black staff and how they make meaning of those interactions as it relates to building a sense of belonging. The conceptual framework for this study incorporates Strayhorn’s (2019) college students’ sense of belonging theoretical model as a foundation with Museus’s (2014) culturally engaging campus environment model as a lens for analysis of the findings.

Using a hermeneutical phenomenological approach, 12 Black undergraduate students were recruited to participate. Each of the students attended a public 4-year PWI in the Great …

The Beat Behind The Bark: Investigating The Effects Of Music Tempo On Canine Physiological And Psychological States, Marley Lanier

Poster Presentations

Music is a universal component of human culture that has been demonstrated influencing emotional, cognitive, and physiological responses, specifically heart rate and hormonal responses (Mehr et al., 2019; Trappe, 2012). Recently, this research has expended to explore how music may affect non-human animals, particularly dogs, due to their roles as therapy animals, service animals, and human companions (Lindig et al., 2020; Gee et al., 2021). Being able to understand how music influences canine stress and relaxation hold important applications in environments such as shelters, veterinary clinics, and at home. One important feature of music is tempo, or beats per minute …

The Personality Of Place: Physical Geography And The Shaping Of The Nineteenth-Century German Immigrant Ethnic Identity, Abigail Ward

Honors Theses

In the nineteenth century alone, approximately five million German-speaking immigrants arrived in America. However, the motivations of these individuals for moving to America, far from identical, were nearly as numerous as the individuals themselves. The German ethnic identity in America was not uniform, but the expression of many factors having to do with both the Vaterland and the new land. These factors ranged from the timing of emigration, which was largely influence by religious, political, and economic upheaval in Europe, to each German’s system of values, which dictated the kind of future he saw for himself and therefore where he …

Choosing Death: The Moral Legitimacy Of Voluntary Active Euthanasia, Emma Rougeou

Honors Theses

During the last three decades, the issue of physician assisted suicide has captivated the interest of private citizens and state legislatures. Thinking about the matter of end-of-life concerns, particularly surrounding euthanasian (practices that hasten the deaths of suffering terminally ill people) have shifted. Views of private citizens and state-level legislation reflects a “slow shift to more permissive attitudes” (Cohen et al., 2012). Meanwhile, as recently as March 2026, state legislators in conjunction with the NY State Governor, passed a bill legalizing medical aid in dying for terminally ill patients. This thesis is intended to thoughtfully contribute to meaningful discourse on …

Discipline, Preparation, And Persistence: How School Environments Shape The Teacher Pipeline In Arkansas, Taylor Wilson

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation uses administrative and survey data from Arkansas to examine how school discipline environments shape multiple stages of the teacher pipeline, including student disciplinary experiences, entry into the teaching workforce, and early career preparedness and retention. The first chapter analyzes statewide student-level data from 2017/18 through 2022/23 to document trends and racial disparities in school discipline before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic. After accounting for infraction type and student characteristics, Black students remained more likely to receive exclusionary disciplinary consequences, though these disparities were substantially reduced when district fixed effects were included. The second chapter examines labor market …

Popular Protest And Corporate Reputation: Exploring The Impact On Recruitment And Retention, Heather Miller

Dissertations

In today’s sociopolitical climate, popular protest has become a powerful force shaping how organizations are judged and how people decide where to work. This qualitative study took place during a period of heightened sociopolitical activity and public unrest in the United States, when organizational responses to contested issues were especially visible and consequential. This study explored how popular protest affects corporate reputation (CR) and, in turn, influences employee recruitment and retention. Drawing on stakeholder theory (ST), corporate social responsibility (CSR), and corporate social advocacy (CSA), the study situated popular protest as an external pressure that exposes alignment or misalignment in …

Generations At Work: Examining Differences In The Nonprofit Sector, Cory J. Bergeron

Dissertations

This non-experimental quantitative dissertation examined generational differences among non-management employees in the United States nonprofit sector, where multiple generational cohorts work side by side. The problem addressed is that nonprofit leaders’ limited understanding of how distinct generational experiences shape employees’ work-related attitudes and preferences can contribute to conflict, reduced engagement, and costly turnover in already resource-constrained organizations. Grounded in Mannheim’s generational theory and Becker’s human capital theory, the study conceptualized generational cohorts as groups whose shared formative experiences influence what they value in their work context and how those values translate into human capital that affects organizational outcomes.

Using a …

Scrolling Fatigue: How Continuous Short-Form Video Consumption Affects User Attention And Satisfaction, Maribeliy Ramos Jimenez

Communications and Digital Media Theses

This thesis focuses on the negative effects that derive from continuous short-from video consumption. It specifically examines the relationship between user scrolling fatigue, attention, and satisfaction with constant usage of short-form video platforms. It mainly focuses on the use of digital platforms such as TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook, and Instagram. This research builds on previously examined empirical investigations that analyzed the effects of scrolling through short-form video digital platforms influences users’ memory, stress, and procrastination. The research analyzes the possible connection with the use of survey-based quantitative methods. The study aims to determine how users process the continuous exposure to short-form …

Sustainability Savvy: The Role Of Competence And Efficacy In Promoting Pro-Environmental Behavior, Lorenna Graham

Environmental Studies Honors Projects

Combatting environmental issues requires both large-scale and individual change. While many understand that personal pro-environmental behavior (PEB) is necessary, individuals do not always engage in this behavior (Hines, 1986, Goh, 2022). Thus, there is a need to investigate psychological factors which encourage PEB. Prior research suggests competence and outcome efficacy as likely PEB predictors (Bentler, 2023, Lavergne & Pelletier, 2015, Priolo, 2016), while cognitive dissonance has been shown to both encourage and discourage PEB (Bouwman, 2022, Dickerson, 1992, Ehrich & Irwin, 2005). Study 1 investigates the relationship between cognitive dissonance and PEB with competence and outcome efficacy as potential moderators. …

Changes In The Dental & Oral Health Information Landscape, Alisun Dekock, Melissa Ernst, Jimmy Gonzalez Vicker, Kelly O'Brien

Individual Scholarship

As we navigate rapid changes to information access and utilization, dental and oral health care professionals are finding new ways to meet the needs of their users. Practitioners locating, evaluating, and applying research continues to encounter new obstacles, including significant changes to institutions that share health data and make recommendations. This poster discusses effective strategies dentistry librarians have used for information retrieval, method analysis, and patient education.

Background  

This poster provides an overview of how four dentistry librarians are responding to trends and changes in the dental and oral health information landscape at their various institutions and organizations.

Description   

Within …

Beyond The Cycle: How Menstruation Influences Gender Identity And Well-Being In Binary And Non-Binary Adults, Rin Nguyen

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

Approximately 1.8 billion people worldwide menstruate, including transgender and gender-diverse (TGD) people, yet their experiences remain underrepresented in research. Given that menstruation can affect gender alignment and psychological well-being, understanding its impact on TGD people is critical. Gender congruence, or alignment between one’s gender identity and expression, is a key factor influencing well-being, with research linking it to reduced depression and anxiety. Furthermore, emerging research on gender euphoria, the joy experienced when gender congruence is experienced, suggests it may serve as a protective factor for mental health and well-being. Gender euphoria has been associated with reduced psychological distress and increased …

Religion As Political Influence: Representation, Rhetoric, And Advocacy In American Politics, Andrew G. Tate

All Dissertations

Religion has long been recognized as a central force in American political life, shaping patterns of representation, public opinion, and policy advocacy. At the same time, the contemporary religious landscape is characterized by declining denominational attachment, increasing religious diversity, and growth in non-denominational and unaffiliated populations. These changes raise questions about whether religion continues to influence politics through traditional mechanisms such as clear denominational alignment or whether its political effects now operate through more indirect or restructured pathways. This manuscript addresses this question through a multi-level analysis of religion’s political role, integrating three studies that examine descriptive representation, organizational political …

Local Values, Global Standards: Understanding Aviation Safety Culture In The Middle East Region, Ernest N. Ogbozor, Jules Yimga, Nicholas Degarmo, Kathrine Lopez, Hana Marz, Michael Chrisman, Cedric Leon, Joao Souza Dias Garcia, Harrison Debrah, Mariateresa Sestito, Albert Obi, Chidinma Chidoka

International Journal of Aviation, Aeronautics, and Aerospace

This study examines the role of national cultural determinants in shaping aviation safety culture across the Middle East. Employing an exploratory research design that integrates a literature review and structured safety culture surveys, it analyzes how national, organizational, and traditional values influence safety attitudes, communication practices, and reporting behaviors. While the Middle Eastern countries, such as UAE and Qatar possesses advanced aviation infrastructure and regulatory systems, persistent Arab cultural norms, including deference to authority, collective responsibility, and avoidance of public blame, continue to shape safety management and organizational learning. The preliminary findings indicate that these values promote discipline, cooperation, and …

Integrating Ai Into Collection Development Workflows: Prompts, Rubrics, And Responsible Use, Ivan Portillo, David Carson, Margaret Puentes

Library Presentations, Posters, and Audiovisual Materials

AI technologies are advancing at a rapid pace and offer new opportunities for library advancement. This session highlights practical ways AI can support collection development and discusses opportunities to improve library workflows.  Attendees will also learn how AI can strengthen library resource management by optimizing decision making and use of resources.

Learning Outcomes: 

• Attendees will learn about approaches to integrating artificial intelligence into collection development
• Attendees will learn about artificial intelligence tools and their applicability to collections 
• Attendees will learn about the ethical use of artificial intelligence tools