Sociology Commons^™

Gender Differences In Rates Of Anhedonia And The Effect Of Menstrual Cycles In University Students, Arianna Rueda

Content presented at the Roesch Social Sciences Symposium

Anhedonia is the lack of experiencing pleasure from pleasurable experiences (D'haenen, 1996) and is associated with the reward pathway in the brain (Langvik et al., 2016). Anhedonia can be further broken down into physical or social (Martino et al., 2018).

• Physical anhedonia is the absence of pleasure from eating, drinking, or physical touch.
• Social anhedonia is a lack of pleasure derived from social experiences.

Previous research has looked at gender differences in anhedonia with conflicting results.

• One measure of anhedonic subtype of depression found a relation with positive affect and gender differences more than other measures of anhedonia (Langvik et …

Body Language "Says" More About Whether A Person Is Lying, Emily Scheiwiller, Shelbie Weightman

Content presented at the Roesch Social Sciences Symposium

The wording of a question can bias someone's perception of another person (Questionnaire design; Ulatwski, 2013).

• Direct Questions
• Indirect Questions
• Social Awareness

Social Awareness Inventory (SAI) assesses individual differences in social awareness of emotion demonstrated by others (Sheldon, 1996).

Hypothesis 1:Indirect questioning as compared to direct questioning when evaluating an interviewee's dishonest responses will produce more accurate determinations of dishonesty that correspond with research-supported correlates of dishonesty.

Hypothesis 2: Questions designed to detect observer bias related to dishonest behaviors, compared to those related to interviewee verbal and nonverbal characteristics, as well as the observer’s expectations of interviewee behaviors will …

The Effect Of Therapy Dogs And Meditation On Student Stress, Nicole L. Beasley

Content presented at the Roesch Social Sciences Symposium

Students experience many stressors throughout the semester. Student stress may arise from various facets of academic life (e.g. academics, financial, and relationship) (Dusselier et al., 2005). Most students report chronic stress (Pierceall & Keim, 2007).

Therapy dogs may lessen student stress. However, research on how therapy dogs reduce stress is mixed. Some research suggests therapy dogs only reduce psychological perception of stress while other research suggests physiological stress reduction.

Barker et al. (2016) measured stress with both psychological tests and physiological markers in students. Interacting with therapy dogs reduced the perceived stress but did not change the physiological markers of …

The Correlation Between Children's Executive Functioning And Their Academic Performance And Social Competence, Melissa Budisch, Erin Collins

Content presented at the Roesch Social Sciences Symposium

We want to see if there is a positive association with Conscious Discipline, or Social-Emotional Learning, and improved EF skills in children.

Composure: The adult provides children with techniques, such as active calming, to regulate their emotions. (Brain Smart Start and Safe Place)

Adult Assertiveness: The adult is assertive, which provides the structure a child needs to be successful. We would argue that if an adult is assertive and give5 concrete instructions to the children, it can help them better understand self-control and how to effectively achieve a goal. (Visual Routines, Visual Daily Schedule, and Time Machine)

Choices: When a …

Sleep On It! Sleep Consolidation Produces Strong Delayed Memory Retrieval Much Like Immediate Retrieval, Gabriella Silone, Carolina Vázquez, Sarah Lawson, Victoria Karpuszka, Madeline Nash

Content presented at the Roesch Social Sciences Symposium

Research Question: Can sleep consolidation reduce the effects of an interruption during encoding, leading to improved accuracy on a delayed recognition task?

Consolidation: During sleep, memories acquired earlier are processed at a deeper level and strengthened by creating associations with previously-stored information (Rasch & Born, 2008). This process helps better integrate new information into existing long-term memory storage systems. Research indicates that the consolidation process can also prevent the effects of interference during memory retrieval (Robertson, 2012).

Present Study: The present study was designed to examine the effects of sleep consolidation after an interruption of encoding had …

Improving Access To Mental Health Care With Nurse Practitioners, Jessica Whelan

Dissertations

Problem: Over 40% of those with mental illness are untreated since the supply of psychiatrists does not meet the demand. The psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP) may be an adjunct in providing those services. The purpose of this quality assurance study was to evaluate outcomes of care between a PMHNP and a psychiatrist (medical doctor [MD]).

Methods: An observational, descriptive design with a retrospective medical record review of adult patients over a six-month period in a suburban, Midwestern, privately owned psychiatric practice.

Results: A total of 787 individual patients encountered at least one visit (N=787) although 3,679 …

Support From Inside Out: Exploring Whether Various Social Supports Assist In Reducing Prison Rule Violations, Sarah Renee Lazzari

Dissertations and Theses

Scholars argue that prison rule violations are a way to assess whether individuals are engaging in prosocial behaviors. Individuals who engage in prosocial behaviors, during periods of incarceration, are less likely to engage in behaviors that result in official rule violations. Decreasing rule violations is one way to work towards a safer prison environment, while also preparing individuals for release. The current study uses cross-sectional data form the 2004 Survey of Inmates in State and Federal Facilities, in order to examine whether multiple types of prisons programs, which will be framed as various types of social supports, influence the frequency …

Cross Validation Of The Environmental Attitudes Inventory: Plans To Assess Attitudinal Changes In Workers At A Shelter Farm In A Food Desert, Amanda Barry, Alea Albright

Content presented at the Roesch Social Sciences Symposium

Within the context of an ongoing participatory community action research project that implements behavioral activation in homeless shelters, an urban farm was implemented. Behavioral activation provides opportunities to engage in productive activities that yield response-contingent reinforcement, which increases productive behavior and leads to improvements in a sense of mastery, quality of life, mood, and cognition.

The project represents a collaboration between Dr. Roger N. Reeb (Professor of Psychology) and St. Vincent de Paul. Among our many community partners, we developed a collaboration with the Ohio State University Agricultural Extension of Montgomery County in 2017 to establish an urban farm on …

Halloween, Superstition, And Black Cat Bias, Brianna Gavin

Content presented at the Roesch Social Sciences Symposium

Black Cat Bias (BCB): “Cats with black coats are viewed more negatively, adopted less often, and euthanized more often than lighter colored cats” (Jones & Hart, in press)

Shelter records of 2170 cats showed black cats stay in shelter about one month longer than non-black cats (Kubesova, Voslarova, Cecerek, & Vucinic, 2017)

Length of stay in shelter positively correlated with risk of contracting URI (Dinnage, Scarlett, & Richards, 2009) and coronavirus (Pedersen, Sato, Foley, & Poland, 2004)

Jones and Hart (in press) found black cats were perceived as more aggressive and less friendly than non-black cats

Jones and Hart (in …

Measuring Gender Equity At Ud Among Faculty, Staff, And Leadership, Mary Mcloughlin, Josh Segalewitz

Content presented at the Roesch Social Sciences Symposium

The purpose of this report card is to be transparent around the representation of women across the UD workforce and in leadership roles.

Our goal is to annually evaluate progress toward increasing institutional diversity and promoting equity for women-identified staff and faculty. In doing so, the report identifies areas where progress is being made and areas where more work is needed.

Impact Of In-Depth Storyline On Children’S Math Skills In Adaptive E-Book, Shelbie Weightman

Content presented at the Roesch Social Sciences Symposium

The percentage of homes tablet computers and children under age 8 has increased from 8 percent in 2011 to 78 percent in 2017 (Zippert, et al.).

E-books for literacy have been shown to be beneficial for young children, but less is known about math-focused e-books.

Parent-child interaction about math story problems, even just once a week, showed improved math achievement in the child by the end of the school year. The benefits of occasional math-related interactions are especially apparent for children whose parents are anxious about math. Providing a math app that allows math-anxious parents to more easily engage in …

Associations Between Decision Making And Hedonic Responses To Odor, Madison E. Degnan

Content presented at the Roesch Social Sciences Symposium

Olfaction, or the sense of smell, is facilitated by specialized sensory cells, called olfactory sensory neurons, which are directly connected directly to the brain.

The limbic system is a set of brain structures located on both sides of the thalamus.

The limbic circuitry supports a variety of functions, including emotion, behavior, motivation, long-term memory, and olfaction.

The olfaction bulb is connected to the amygdala and the hippocampus.

The anterior limbic and related structures including the orbitofrontal cortex and amygdala are involved in emotion, reward valuation, and reward-related decision-making (but not memory), with the value representations transmitted to the anterior cingulate …

Liar Liar: Gender Differences In Deception Detection, Jake Avendano, Kelly Boris, Faith Plummer

Content presented at the Roesch Social Sciences Symposium

The present study explores the relationship between social awareness, type of questioning, gender effects, and deception detection. Following are important definitions of concepts and tools used in this research:

• We can bias someone's perception of another person by the way a question is worded (Questionnaire design; Ulatwski, 2013).
• Direct Question: An explicit measure of deception detection. Direct questions focus on personality characteristics associated with deception (DePaulo, 2018).
• Indirect Question: Lie detection does not access implicit knowledge but focuses the perceiver on more useful cues. Indirect questions focus on biases, and verbal and body language (Street & Richardson, 2015).
• Deception Detection …

Stress Reduction After Visiting Cats In A Cat Café, Nicole L. Beasley

Content presented at the Roesch Social Sciences Symposium

Research has attempted to induce stress and has been unsuccessful at demonstrating the efficacy of stress reduction. This may indicate that animal interaction is more beneficial when reducing longer-term stress rather than short-term stress, like what has been studied in the past. Additionally, animals may be more effective at reducing life stress as opposed to artificially produced stress.

Past research has limited the time participants may spend interacting with the study animals. The current study will allow participants to spend as much time as necessary with the café cats.

The present study will record a physiological marker of stress and …

Visitor Characteristics, Attitudes, And Management Preferences Of The Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex, Samuel J. Rhodes

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex (BMWC) encompasses 3 federal wilderness areas and spans over 1.5 million acres of iconic mountains and valleys in northwestern Montana. Here visitors can find a plethora of recreation opportunity that give access to some of the most rugged country that can be found in the lower 48 states. However, managing wilderness areas comes with the challenge of both preserving the natural resources found within their borders and enabling opportunities for recreational experiences. Wilderness social scientists always have striven to determine the type of visitors coming to wilderness, and see what sorts of experiences they pursue. …

Self-Similarities In Gender Inequality And Human Freedom, Ann Sheila C. Del Rosario

Social Sciences and Development Review

This study utilized the data of countries worldwide to explore on their fractal distribution vis a vis gender inequality and freedom. It determined whether gender inequality can be enhanced via exercise of unrestrained human freedom. The gender inequality index used in this study measures gaps in reproductive health, empowerment and the labor market while human freedom is measured on the basis of civil liberties and political rights. Results of the fractal dimension estimates of the variables which are 1.92661 and 1.29979 respectively denote that human freedom accounts for the 61% of the gender inequality among countries included in the study. …

Broken Pots, Mended Dreams: Concepts, Causes, And Effects Of Teenage Pregnancy In Outreach Barangay, Nick John B. Solar

Social Sciences and Development Review

This study aimed to determine the concepts, causes and effects of teenage pregnancy among selected residents in outreach barangay as an entire group and when classified as to sex. Mixed descriptive and phenomenological methods of research were used, utilizing 50 selected residents as respondents, 7 or 14% were male and 43 or 86% were female, whom were selected through random sampling. The data were obtained through the use of a survey questionnaire. Based on the findings, results revealed that when respondents were categorized by the entire group, teenage pregnancy was the transition period between childhood and adulthood, while, incident of …

Entering A Community Of Writers: The Writing Center, Doctoral Students, And Going Public With Scholarly Writing, Sara Winstead Fry, Melissa Keith, Jennifer Gardner, Amanda Bremner Gilbert, Amanda Carmona, Sabrina Schroeder, Audrey Kleinsasser

The Qualitative Report

In addition to taking advanced courses, graduate students navigate a potentially challenging transition of learning to write for publication. We, the authors, explored solutions to this transition with a study designed to explore the research questions: How does a systematic effort to help doctoral students enter a community of writers via writing center collaboration influence doctoral students’: (1) proficiency with academic writing, (2) writing apprehension, (3) self-efficacy as writers, and (4) comfort with “going public” with their writing? We used a collaborative, multi-layered self-study research approach because it allowed us to focus on critical examination of teaching practices that are …

Using An Lms In Teaching English: A Qualitative Content Analysis Of Medical Sciences Students’ Evaluations And Suggestions, Iman Alizadeh

The Qualitative Report

In this study, I aimed to discover Iranian medical sciences students’ evaluation of using a Learning Management System (LMS) in teaching English and to collect their suggestions for using the system more efficiently. To collect data, I conducted semi-structured interviews with 38 students. The themes emerging from the qualitative content analysis of the students’ responses were (1) technical advantages (accessibility, and online homework bank), (2) educational gains (learning gains, benefits for professors, and professor-student interaction), (3) logistical benefits (optimizing class time, task management, and logistical support), (4) educational shortcomings (limited instruction, correction and feedback, and academic misconduct), (5) technical limitations …

Social Prescribing For An Aging Population, Amy Clements-Cortés, Joyce Yip

Music Faculty Publications

As the human population is moving toward a demographic of aging individuals, increased levels of stress will be placed on the current health care system. “… As people live longer, there is a tendency or the onset of disease to occur closer to the end of life” (p. 441) and the incidence of mental health illnesses is prevalent in older adults. Currently, the medical model is dominant in the health care system and aims to cure any issue(s) without considerations in the cause or source. Social prescribing/social prescription enables physicians and health care professionals to refer individuals to non-clinical services, …

The Rattler (Volume 108, Issue 4), St. Mary's University

The Rattler (Previous issues)

Founded in 1919, The Rattler is the student voice of St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, Texas. The newspaper documents campus life, academic and social issues, student opinion, and local and national events as they relate to the University community. Content typically includes news articles, editorial commentary, arts and culture coverage, sports reporting, and advertisements.

Adolescent Male Behaviors As Portrayed In The Disney Sitcom Hannah Montana, Erin T. Maurer

Honors College Theses

This research project uses content analysis to examine themes related to toxic masculinity and misogyny in the sitcom Hannah Montana. In particular, the sitcom’s child character Rico Suave is shown to be misogynistic when interacting with women. There is little literature on the topic of representation of toxic masculinity as shown in child characters, but there are many examples in modern media, such as the trope of the child being attracted to the babysitter, the lifeguard, and the friend of an older sibling. Using similarly-formatted transcripts from seasons two, three, and four, I pulled all lines of dialogue and stage …

Comments From The National Center For The Study Of Collective Bargaining In Higher Education And The Professions In Response To Proposed Nlrb Rule Concerning Graduate Assistants And Other Student Employees, William A. Herbert, Joseph Van Der Naald

Publications and Research

These are public comments submitted by National Center for the Study of Collective Bargaining in Higher Education and the Professions, Hunter College, City University of New York in response to a proposed NLRB rule that would exclude student employees from coverage under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). The comments include information and data showing that the proposed rule would exclude from NLRA coverage 81,390 graduate assistants working at 518 private institutions in occupations that other federal agencies treat as distinct from the classification of graduate student. The comments also present a half-century of history and legal precedent concerning collective …

Psu Black Studies At Risk, Professor Says: Administration Called Out For Toxic Environment, Beverly Corbell, Ethan Johnson

Black Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

This school year is the 50th anniversary of the formation of the Black Studies Department at Portland State University, a momentous occasion for celebrating the formation of a degree curriculum devoted to the history, culture and politics of black people, but the African-American director of the department doesn’t feel much like celebrating.

Ethan Johnson, who has headed the department for the past 15 years, says the university is failing to support the black studies curriculum and even more is failing to listen to the concerns of minority students and faculty at the school, a result that is disastrous to their …

Ua12/2/1 College Heights Herald, Vol. 95, No. 11 [13], Wku Student Affairs

WKU Administration Documents

WKU campus newspaper reporting campus, athletic and Bowling Green, Kentucky news. This issue contains articles:

• Chisenhall, Jeremy. WKU Deals Offer Chances to Study in China – Shaanxi Normal University
• Collins, Michael. How DACA Rulings Could Affect WKU Students – Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals
• Stahl, Matt. WKU Basketball Records Request Heads to In-camera Review
• Burris, Lily. 5 Questions with Dean Larry Snyder
• Lamb, Cassady. Students Can Pay Back Library Fines in a New Way
• Stack, Madalyn. Editorial Cartoon re: Freedom of the Press
• Penalizing the Press – China
• Mattison, Reed. On Ice – SoKY Ice Rink
• Holland, Kelley. Folklore Class …

Ua12/2/1 Adulting, Wku Student Affairs

WKU Administration Documents

Magazine edition of the College Heights Herald includes articles:

• Robb, Hayley. Dear Reader
• Certifying Success
• Navigating Your Faith After College
• Brandt, Jess. The Post-grad Adjustment Period
• Morrison, Brittany. How to Dress Professionally
• Wax On, Wax Off – Waxing the City
• Christensen, Nicole. Striking a Balance: Combining Passions with Careers
• A Booth & a Brand – Ashley Rogers, Tapsnap
• Planning the Perfect Wedding

New Hampshire Demographic Trends In An Era Of Economic Turbulence, Kenneth M. Johnson

Carsey Publications

In this brief, author Kenneth Johnson reports that New Hampshire gained 40,000 residents (a 3 percent increase) between 2010 and 2018, and the population reached 1,356,458 on July 1, 2018, according to the Census Bureau. Population gains in New Hampshire have diminished over time, though growth has recently picked up. Migration is the biggest driver of population change, and the pattern of demographic change is uneven across the state. New Hampshire’s population is aging and becoming more racially diverse, particularly among children. Johnson notes that, although New Hampshire is a relatively small player on the nation’s huge demographic stage, there …

We Need To Change The Language We Use To Describe Individuals With Substance Use Issues, Austin Mcneill Brown

Population Health Research Brief Series

People with substance use disorders (SUDs) are highly stigmatized worldwide. This research brief describes the results from several studies on unconscious bias and negative language used to describe individuals with SUDs.

Information Seeking Behavior In Academic Assignments Using Smartphone Among Elementary School Students, Rahma Sugihartati

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

This article discusses information seeking behavior developed by elementary school students in completing academic assignments, their reasons for using smartphone to find information related to academic assignments, and students' opinions about the role of school libraries. All data presented in this article are the results of a study on 500 elementary school students in four major cities in East Java Province, Indonesia, namely Surabaya, Malang, Madiun and Malang. This study found that there has been a change in information seeking behavior among elementary students who no longer rely solely on information from textbooks in the libraries. The students have become …

Clinical Implications In Vaginal Orgasm Response, Lindsey M. Brown Mccormick, Sherry Todd, Laura Schmuldt, Kathryn Russ, Cristen Wathen

Journal of Counseling Sexology & Sexual Wellness: Research, Practice, and Education

Previous research has shown that counselors feel uncomfortable addressing clients’ sexual concerns due to a lack of education on topics related to human sexuality. Various studies have attempted to identify the characteristics of vaginal orgasm, including whether women and other people with vaginas (PWV) can achieve different kinds of orgasms. The current study examines responses to participants surveyed across the United States on their orgasm response and compares responses of participants who achieved orgasm through masturbation and those who achieved orgasm through sex with a partner to determine whether PWV experience one kind of orgasm during masturbation and experience a …