Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Redefining Immutability: Utah's Model For Advancing Lgbt Rights, Zachary Herzog

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

This paper attempts to explain the Supreme Court’s recent efforts to expand the definition of immutable rights to protect LGBT Americans and argues that gender identity also be included in that definition. States should expand this definition in their own constitutions and do so in a way that protects the interests of the LGBT community as well as other demographics. Utah Senate Bill 296 is a good example of how this definition can be successfully expanded, and should be a model for states in which LGBT antidiscrimination legislation has been less effective.

The Systematic Neglect Of Inmates Suffering From Substance-Use Disorder In The American Prison Systems, J Lyons

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

While the problem of crime and its perpetuation is multifactorial and inherently complex, the mental and physical health of criminals falls under the legal oversight of the penal system. Prisoners have a legal right to quality medical care—a right that is often forgotten and neglected by society at large and, more specifically, the court system itself.

The Battle Of Birthright Citizenship, Joshua White

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

This article examines the legal case behind denying birthright citizenship to the children of illegal aliens born on U.S. territory and thereby correcting the present interpretation of the Citizenship Clause. Currently, children of illegal aliens born on U.S. territory are automatically granted citizenship jus soli. This removes the sovereignty of the American citizen by supplanting the citizen with an illegal alien in determining who can become citizens of the United States. To resolve this problem, Congress must enact legislation specifically restricting birthright citizenship from children of illegal aliens. While other articles focus on the morality of accepting refugees or illegal …

Eye Behavior While Reading Words Of Sanskrit And Urdu Origin In Hindi, Tahira Carroll

Theses and Dissertations

Hindi and Urdu are two branches of the same language sometimes known as Hindustani. They are divided by orthography and geography but when spoken are sometimes indistinguishable. Both have contributed loanwords that have now been completely assimilated into the language. The question of how the eye behaves during Hindi reading when it encounters Urdu loanwords has not been focused on extensively in prior research. The main purpose of this thesis is to document the eye behavior during reading Sanskrit-based words and Urdu loanwords in Hindi. We place fifteen word pairs consisting of one target Hindi Sanskrit-based word and its Urdu …

Spanish Heritage Bilingual Perception Of English-Specific Vowel Contrasts, John B. Nielsen

Theses and Dissertations

Theories of lexical storage differ in how entries are encoded in the lexicon. Exemplar-based accounts posit that lexical items are stored with detailed acoustic information, while abstract accounts argue that fine acoustic detail is removed and an item is stored in more basic phonological units. These separate accounts make distinct predictions about cross-linguistic and bilingual perception. Studies asking participants to compare non-native vowels have shown that people tend to associate multiple non-native phonemes to a single L1 phoneme when the contrast between the two does not exist in the L1. However, several studies have shown that the ability to discriminate …

Social Withdrawal And Psychological Well-Being In Later Life: Does Marital Status Matter?, Melanie Mei Serrao

Theses and Dissertations

Personality researchers have described dispositional traits to typically show stability over the life course and yet one such trait, shyness, has rarely been examined in later life. Shyness as a global trait has been linked negatively to multiple psychological indices of childhood well-being, including loneliness. Despite the fact that older adults may be already at risk for experiencing heightened loneliness, regret, or decreased fulfillment, research has not assessed these experiences in relation to personality in later life. In recent years, withdrawal research has begun to move past shyness as a global trait to examine the motivations behind socially withdrawn behavior. …

The Mediating Role Of Relational Aggression Between Neuroticism And Couple Attachment And Relationship Quality In Long-Term Committed Relationships, Sarah Annis Eliason

Theses and Dissertations

Much of the literature regarding relational aggression in romantic relationships has focused on the behaviors and outcomes of the actor and victim independently. Additionally, the relationships studied usually cover emerging adult samples, and rarely expand to long-term committed relationships, such as cohabiting or married couples. In this paper I sought to determine if relationally aggressive behaviors in long-term committed relationships over time resulted as a function of individual predictors (e.g. neuroticism), or as a process of couple interactions (e.g. couple attachment); and how these traits directly and indirectly (through relational aggression) influenced relationship quality. An Actor Partner Independence Model (APIM) …

Nabataean Subadult Mortuary Practices, Courtney Dotson Ewert

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis provides the beginnings of further research on the correlation between Nabataean mortuary practices and specific biological age ranges. It seeks to answer the question of whether Nabataean infants were absent from, or under-represented, in Nabataean cemeteries. Several quantitative analyses and descriptive statistics were performed, comparing Nabataean adult and subadult burials from fourteen sites. Nabataean cemetery populations were also compared with Walter Scheidel's model life table. These analyses demonstrate that Nabataean burials typically consisted of either a single adult or multiple individuals of various age ranges. Subadults, individuals under the age of 20 years, were rarely found buried by …

The Effects Of Fluency Training On The Acquisition And Retention Of Secondary Students' Fraction Skills, Jani Dawn Ashbaker

Theses and Dissertations

Secondary students, especially those with learning disabilities, often lack an understanding of computations involving fractions. Much of the secondary math core, especially algebra, requires an understanding of fractions to be able to successfully complete core classes. Instruction on fraction concepts in not part of the secondary core standards. These students are expected to already have this knowledge. There is a need for students with learning disabilities who struggle with fraction computations to receive instruction on fraction concepts in addition to their core instruction. This study used direct instruction and fluency practice as an intervention to teach basic fraction skills to …

Burial Plots: Finding Theatre In The Thanatology Of Colonial North Coast Peru, Connie Ericksen

Theses and Dissertations

Spain's invasion of the Andes initiated a social drama unprecedented in the experience of the Andean natives. Spanish and Spanish-conscripted native chroniclers wrote extensively about Inca pageantry, spectacle, and ritual, and hastily attributed pagan belief to performances they witnessed or heard about. With equal haste, the Spanish appropriated performance as means of introducing and enforcing Christianity. In this thesis, I treat performance as the central feature of Andean Colonial transition. Performance may be viewed as an ephemeral feature of the Andean transition but fortunately, in mortuary performances (dealing with death and treatment of the body); there are many theatrical elements …

Women In Community Corrections In New York City: Hiv Infection And Risks, Nabila El-Bassel, Phillip Marotta, Stacey Shaw, Mingway Chang, Xin Ma, D Goddard-Eckrich, Tim Hunt, Karen Johnson, Sharun Goodwin, Maria Almonte, Louisa Gilbert

Faculty Publications

Although the incidence of HIV among women on probation, parole and alternatives to incarceration programs is significant to public health, drivers of this concentrated epidemic among women under community corrections remain understudied. This study examined prevalence of HIV and sexually transmitted infections and the associations between substance use, sociodemographic factors and the prevalence of biologically-confirmed HIV and other sexually transmitted infections among a sample of 337 substance-using women recruited from community correction sites in New York City. Prevalence of HIV was 13% and sexually transmitted infections was 26% (Chlamydia, trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhea). After adjusting for covariates, HIVpositive women were …

Differences In The Motivations Of Chinese Learners Of English In Different (Foreign Or Second Language) Contexts, Rui Li

Theses and Dissertations

This study employed the L2 Motivational Self-System (Dörnyei, 2005) as a framework to compare differences in the types of motivation reported by Chinese learners of English in a foreign language context (China) and a second language context (USA). It followed up on studies by Taguchi, Magid, and Papi (2009) and You and Dörnyei (2016). The participants consisted of 61 current students at an American university who come from Mainland China. This study adopted a mixed-method approach, using an internet-based questionnaire followed by an individual interview. The investigation aimed to explore what types of English learning motivation Chinese students have in …

Evaluating The Dimensionality Of Pornography, Dean M. Busby, Hsin-Yao Chiu, Joseph A. Olsen, Brian J. Willoughby

Faculty Publications

Pornography may be a construct with a single trait or one with many traits. Research in the past was inconsistent in this regard with most researchers assuming that pornography was unidimensional (with one single trait of pornography). However, the considerable amounts of residual variation found in these studies beyond that explained by the single trait hints at what might be a multidimensional construct (with multiple traits such as sensitization and differentiation). Consequently, in this study, we intended to address the question of whether pornography consisted of a single trait or if it was multidimensional. Using MTurk, 2173 participants from the …

Are Our Policy Makers On Board? What Policy Makers Think Of The Social Determinants, Health Disparities, And Health In All Policies, M. Lelinneth B. Novilla, Michael C. Goates, Spencer Calder, Tabetha Ellis, Kraymer Eppich, Laura A. Galvao, Noyra Melissa Quintana, David Mateos

Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: We impact our health by “how we manage our affairs in society.”¹ The unequal distribution of power, money, and resources creates a collective social milieu with disparities in health between and within countries. Tackling health inequities require addressing the health implications of the “toxic combination of poor social policies and bad politics.”¹ But how do U.S. policy makers view the social determinants of health?

OBJECTIVE: Determine U.S. policy makers’ awareness for the social determinants of health, health inequities, and health in all policies; identify the social determinants of health perceived as legislative priorities; list factors identified/perceived …

American Prosperity Faces The Music, Douglas E. Archibald

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

If music influences people, what influences music? Intuitively, it is inspired by cultural traditions, changes in technology, and the zeitgeist of nations. On an even deeper level, it is inspired by demand. People will not buy music that does not give them utility. Now, how can someone know what type of music is in demand, or will be in demand? What factors influence music demand, and by studying these can future music trends be predicted? The purpose of this study is to discover how the economic well-being of a nation influences the demand for certain types of music, and if …

Early Exposure To Expository Texts: Administering The Eeca-R2 To Preschoolers, Annika Stark, Barbara Culatta

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Children are exposed to a variety of narrative texts from a young age. However, young children are not given this same amount of exposure to expository texts. Expository texts inform and describe as they expose a child to factual information. There is a current need in early childhood education for an assessment tool that helps teachers gauge young students’ expository text comprehension skills. In 2005, Dr. Kendra Hall-Kenyon, Dr. Janet Markham, and Dr. Barbara Culatta collaborated to develop an assessment tool to address this problem. The tool was titled the Early Expository Comprehension Assessment (EECA) and was found to be …

Communication Patterns, Spousal Influence, Relationship Quality, And Genetic Testing In Regards To Colorectal Cancer Prevention, Kaitlynn Wright, Wendy C. Birmingham

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common cancer types in the United States. Having CRC in one’s family history is one of the strongest risk factors for this cancer, suggesting a genetic influence in developing CRC. While this cancer can be deadly, many steps can be taken to reduce one’s risk of getting CRC by making healthy lifestyle choices such as improving one’s diet, maintaining a healthy BMI, and engaging in an exercise regimen. Receiving CRC screening is a highly effective method for reducing one’s risk for the disease, however many with CRC in their family histories do …

Understanding Utah’S Water Resources Through The Red Canyon Bristlecone Pine Tree, Shawn Wortham, Matthew Bekker

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of this research project is to properly cross date samples of the Bristlecone Pine Tree in order to learn more of the past, present, and future of Utah’s Water Resources. Under the mentorship of Dr. Bekker, we will take both living and dead cross sections of the Bristlecone Pine Trees found in Red Canyon, UT and add them to a tree ring database with hundreds of other samples. This will build a master chronology of tree ring measurements to help our team to discover more about the water supply for Utah.

Re-Ordering Utterances Using Transition Probabilities Among Randomly Assigned Grammatical Tags, Emily Duncan, Ron Channell

Journal of Undergraduate Research

It was our desire to investigate further, using a computer model, how children acquire language. Specifically, we decided to investigate how children learn how to arrange grammatical tags (i.e. grammatical categories: verb, adjective, etc.) into the proper order. Originally, we were going to investigate how an evolutionary algorithm could improve the degree of accuracy in re-ordering grammatical tags. However, we decided to branch off of a previous study to gain a better understanding of the potential of a computer model to re-order the grammatical tags with just the tag transition probabilities. In her thesis last year, Katie Shaw Walker, a …

Four Year Effects Of Couple Relationship Education On Low And High Satisfaction Couples: A Randomized Clinical Trial, W. Kim Halford, Riyad H. Rahimullah, Keithia L. Wilson, Stefano Occhipinti, Dean M. Busby, Jeffrey Larson

Faculty Publications

Objective: Relationship education (RE) usually is conceived of as relationship enhancement for currently satisfied couples, with a goal of helping couples sustain satisfaction. However, RE also might be useful as a brief, indicated intervention for couples with low satisfaction. The current study evaluated the effect oof RE on couples with low and high relationship satisfaction. Method: The study was a randomized controlled trial in which 182 couples were randomly assigned to: a book reading control condition (control); RELATE online assessment with feedback and relationship goal setting (RELATE); or RELATE with CoupleCARE (RCC), a flexible delivery skill-based education program. Couples …

Latino Adolescent Substance Use: A Mediating Model Of Inter-Parental Conflict, Deviant Peer Associations, And Parenting, Sergio B. Pereyra, Roy A. Bean

Faculty Publications

Substance use among Latino adolescents continues to be a growing concern for researchers and clinicians. This paper reviews relevant literature regarding the impact of inter-parental conflict (IPC), deviant peer associations (DPA) and parenting behaviors, namely as parental support, psychological control, and parental monitoring knowledge on substance use among Latino adolescents. Although mediating models of IPC and similar parenting behaviors on adolescent externalizing behaviors have been represented in empirical studies, none have included the influence of peer associations or have analyzed these factors with substance use among Latino adolescents in the U.S. This study investigated direct relationships of IPC and DPA …

Rates And Predictors Of Adolescent Premature Termination: Applying Clinically Significant Change, Mariah Meaalii Bullock

Theses and Dissertations

Premature termination from child and adolescent psychotherapy is a prevalent problem for clients, their families, and mental health services. Rates of premature termination have been estimated at a range of 16-72%. Many variables have been examined as potential predictors of premature termination, yielding inconsistent conclusions. Researchers propose that part of this variability in rates and predictors is due to the inconsistent application of definitions of premature termination. The past literature identifies two main categories of definitions in this line of research: therapist judgment and number of sessions. This study aims to incorporate a relatively new definition, clinically significant change, in …

Investigating The Effects Of Rater's Second Language Learning Background And Familiarity With Test-Taker's First Language On Speaking Test Scores, Ksenia Zhao

Theses and Dissertations

Prior studies suggest that raters' familiarity with test-takers' first language (L1) can be a potential source of bias in rating speaking tests. However, there is still no consensus between researchers on how and to what extent that familiarity affects the scores. This study investigates raters' performance and focuses on not only how raters' second language (L2) proficiency level interacts with examinees' L1, but also if raters' teaching experience has any effect on the scores. Speaking samples of 58 ESL learners with L1s of Spanish (n = 30) and three Asian languages (Korean, n = 12; Chinese, n = 8; and …

Tweeting For A Cause: A Content Analysis Of Successful Charitable Nonprofits' Publishing Strategies On Twitter, Shaela Annice Hougaard

Theses and Dissertations

A study examining the content strategies within Twitter posts, from nine charitable nonprofit organizations was conducted. The content analysis was conducted to identify content strategies (relationship cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship) behind each Twitter post from these nine organizations, within a one-week period. The study also looked at levels of engagement on each tweet as well as interactivity from the organization. The results showed that these nine charitable nonprofit organizations were primarily using stewardship strategies and techniques in their posts. The study also found that relationship cultivation yielded higher levels of retweets and that the relationship cultivation and solicitation combination strategy …

Cognitive Control Disruption And Quality Of Life In Individuals With Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Isaac J. Hunt

Theses and Dissertations

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is associated with diminished quality of life and cognitive control dysfunction. Conflict adaptation is a reflection of cognitive control, and consists of the ability to detect conflict in previous trials and adjust performance on current trials. Conflict adaptation is thought to rely on interplay between the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) for detecting conflict and signaling for increases in control, respectively. We hypothesized that individuals with OCD would show reduced conflict adaptation effects in response times, error rates, ACC activation, and dlPFC activation when compared with healthy control subjects. We also expected diminished …

Creole Genesis And Universality: Case, Word Order, And Agreement, Gerald Taylor Snow

Theses and Dissertations

The genesis of creole languages is important to the field of linguistics for at least two reasons. As newly emerging languages, creoles provide a unique window on the human language faculty and on the development of language generally (Veenstra 2008). They also offer insight into what are arguably universal linguistic structures. Two opposing theories have been in contention in the literature with respect to creole genesis: (1) that creoles owe their origin to the lexifier and substrate languages of their speech community and to other environmental influences (McWhorter 1997); and alternatively, (2) that universal innate linguistic structures or principles are …

Exploring The Connections And Tensions Between Sacrifice And Self-Care As Relational Processes In Religious Families, Hilary Dalton

Theses and Dissertations

The relational processes of sacrifice and self-care both influence every human relationship and as such, every human has to learn how to engage in them. Families are one of the many communities in which one must address sacrifice and self-care. This study provides a qualitative exploration of the relational processes of sacrifice and self-care among a sample of 198 highly religious (Abrahamic faiths) families. In-depth analyses explored motivations, types, and related family processes among family relationships. Five themes from the data about how families perceived and addressed the relational processes of sacrifice and self-care are discussed: (1) tensions between sacrifice …

Comparing Two Individually Administered Reading Assessments For Predicting Outcomes On Sage Reading, Meighan Noelle Stevens

Theses and Dissertations

Accountability for student learning outcomes is of importance to parents and school and district administrators, especially since the passage of The No Child Left Behind Act in 2001. The requirement for high-stakes testing to measure progress has fostered interest in ways to monitor student preparedness during the school year. This study used 2014 and 2015 test data from of 154 students from one elementary school to measure the correlation between individually administered Kaufman Test of Educational Achievement Brief Reading and DIBELS Next reading assessments and outcomes on the high-stakes Utah SAGE test. This correlational study used Pearson correlation coefficients to …

Search Strategy Development In A Flipped Library Classroom: A Student-Focused Assessment, Michael C. Goates, Gregory M. Nelson, Megan Frost

Faculty Publications

Librarians at Brigham Young University compared search statement development between traditional lecture and flipped instruction sessions. Students in lecture sessions scored significantly higher on developing search statements than those in flipped sessions. However, student evaluations show a strong preference for pedagogies that incorporate elements from both lecture and flipped methodologies. Reasons for lower flipped-session scores may include a lack of student accountability, strong preference for a live demonstration, and disconnections between online tutorial content and in-class collaborative activities. Librarians using a flipped classroom should consider ways to help students make meaningful connections between online tutorials and in-class activities.

Quizlet Flashcards For The First 500 Words Of The Academic Vocabulary List, Emily R. Crandell

Theses and Dissertations

The Academic Vocabulary List (AVL) was produced by a rationale for word inclusion improved from the methodology used to generate Coxhead's AWL (Gardner & Davies, 2014). It offers a comprehensive view of high frequency academic vocabulary that could greatly benefit ELLs if implemented into ELL curricula (Gardner & Davies, 2014). However, because of the newness of the list, there are few learning resources currently utilizing the AVL. The major objective of this thesis project was to create digital flashcards for the first 500 words of the AVL to increase the list's accessibility to ELLs and teachers worldwide. These flashcards were …