Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Who Said It First? : Linguistic Appropriation Of Slang Terms Within The Popular Lexicon, Rachel Elizabeth Laing

Theses and Dissertations

Linguistic appropriation is an area of study that has been under-researched, even as it has become all the more relevant due to the rapid dissemination of slang and linguistic trends during the digital age. There are clear ties shown between individuals’ and groups’ identity and language. This study specifically examines the appropriation of African American Vernacular English (AAVE) and LGBT language by creating an Acceptability of Appropriation scale and assessing potential relationships between linguistic appropriation, intercultural tolerance, and LGBT tolerance. These results are then examined through the lens of the communication theory of identity (CTI) and potential identity gaps that …

Çështja E Kosovës Drejt Statusit Final Pako E Ahtisarit, Qendresa Xhafa

Theses and Dissertations

Kur flasim për çështje të zgjidhjes së statutit të shteteve të pavarura në botë shohim modele të ndryshme, në disa raste në histori shohim fitimin e statusit të pavarësimit të shteteve në mënyrë të drejtpërdrejt nga rezultatet e luftërave, në raste të tjera shohim ndërmjetësime të fuqive të mëdha, raste të kompensimeve të ndryshme territoriale ose burimeve të ndryshme natyrore të shteteve. Një nga këto raste e hasim edhe rastin e Kosovës të cilin do të mundohemi të e shtjellojmë gjatë këtij punimi në një analizë të marrëveshjeve të ndryshme duke filluar nga marrëveshja e Kumanovës, rezoluta 1244, vendimi i …

Kosova Dhe Politika E Ibrahim Rugovës, Fiolla Zeqiri

Theses and Dissertations

Synimi i këtij punimi bachelor është trajtimi i çështjes së Kosovës gjatë udhëheqjes së Dr.Ibrahim Rugovës. Kuvendi i Republikës së Kosovës ka 120 anëtarë të zgjedhur për një mandat katër vjeçar. Sipas Kushtetutës, Kosova do të ketë një kuvend të përbërë nga 120 anëtarë. Kosova ka një sistem shumëpartiak, me parti të shumta në të cilat asnjë parti shpesh nuk ka shanse të fitojë pushtet, dhe partitë duhet të punojnë me njëra-tjetrën, për të formuar qeveritë e koalicionit. Ky punim përmban ecurinë e ngjarjeve kryesore duke filluar me Presidenti Ibrahim Rugova – cili ishte bashkëthemelues i Lidhjes Demokratike të Kosovë …

Kriza Jugosllave – Rasti I Kosovës, Anesa Ferati

Theses and Dissertations

Synimi i këtij punimi bachelor është trajtimi i çështjes së Kosovës në ish-Jugosllavi gjatë viteve 1990-1999. Ky punim shtjellon çështjen e vetëvendosjes, përpjekjen e shqiptarëve për të qenë të lirë nga okupimi serb. Një luftë nga ana e popullit të Kosovës e cila kishte karakter çlirimtar duke u sfiduar me mënyra më të ndryshme dhe të dhunshme nga ana e serbëve. Si pasojë e përpjekjeve për lirinë e tyre, ata nuk morën asgjë tjetër përpos rrahjeve, burgosjeve, vrasjeve, dhunimeve, shkatërrimeve, plaçkitjeve, djegjeve, masakrimeve, duke mos i kursyer as gratë e deri tek fëmijët. Ky punim përmban ecurinë e ngjarjeve kryesore …

Enhancing Recruitment Efforts In School Mental Health: Pilot Assessment Of A Certificate Training Program, Samantha Martinez

Theses and Dissertations

The expansion of school mental health (SMH) has been critical for children and adolescents to access needed mental health services. Though SMH is needed to support children and adolescents, there have been challenges with recruitment and mental health professional retention. Individuals within the field indicate burnout as a primary predictor for retention issues, but little research has been done on intentional strategies to increase recruitment and retention. The South Carolina Department of Mental Health (SCDMH), a leader in SMH services, developed a strategic plan to address recruitment and retention concerns of clinicians working in schools within the state. The purpose …

Dreadds Modulation Of Operant Behavior In Male And Female Hiv-1 Transgenic And F344/N Rats, Jessica Illenberger

Theses and Dissertations

The neurobiological processes which determine the choice between 2 (or more) reinforcers are unidentified despite the remarkable benefits which could result from better understanding or control of such processes. Most prominently, reducing choices to pursue drug over non-drug reinforcers could curtail the development or continuation of drug dependence. Likewise, increasing goal-directed behavior in single-schedule and choice settings may alleviate some of the consequences of apathy, a reduction in goal-directed behavior which can occur with neuropathologies including HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders. Dysregulation of the mesolimbic circuit, connecting the ventral tegmental area to the nucleus accumbens, has been implicated in both drug dependence …

Escitalopram Treatment To The Hiv-1 Transgenic Rat: Spine Dynamics, Telomere Quantification And Neurogenesis, Adam Ray Denton

Theses and Dissertations

HIV is a serious viral infection that persists in the brain despite treatment. Approximately half of all seropositive patients will experience some degree of comorbid depression, as well as HIV associated neurocognitive disorders. The present research sought to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of escitalopram, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor in ameliorating neuroanatomical and biochemical markers associated with HIV infection. The central purpose of this research is to characterize the effects of escitalopram treatment upon dendritic spine proliferation in the nucleus accumbens. Previous research has consistently demonstrated impaired synaptodendritic integrity in this region, with underlying mechanisms remaining unclear. A secondary focus …

Changing Environment. Changing Attitudes?, Lindsey Brooke Hendren

Theses and Dissertations

Most issues of hyper partisanship, such as health care, yield a strong constituency for action on the issue; the low salience of climate change, however, has failed to produce much change. In order to understand public opinion on climate change, this research draws not only on previous studies in political science, but also from psychology, sociology, communication studies, and other disciplines to provide a more comprehensive theoretical background. This dissertation emphasizes the need for more exploration in the field of political science and attempts to bridge some of the existing gaps. Findings from research such as this identify the opportunities …

Using Aeolian Depositional Lag Times To Relate Dune Vegetation And Topographic Change, Jacquelyn Brianna Ferguson

Theses and Dissertations

Sediment deposition impacts dune morphology and is a product of many environmental factors. Dune vegetation is related to post-storm dune recovery and morphology. Though it is widely agreed that vegetation impacts sediment deposition, this relationship has not yet been quantified in the field. This research was conducted at Isle of Palms, a meso-tidal barrier island in South Carolina, where we collected topographic and vegetation data over an incipient foredune. Vegetation data were classified by functional type (dune-builder or dune-stabilizer) or land cover (sand, wrack). We identified land cover changes resulting in greater surface roughness. To relate land cover change to …

The Shape Of The Bilingual Mental Lexicon: Testing The Cognate Continuum, Danielle Kristine Fahey

Theses and Dissertations

Items in the mental lexicon have three storage and processing strata, the concept, lemma, and lexeme, which equate to semantic, syntactic and phonological information. Lexical items relate to each other at each stratum. Bilingual lexicons, which contain items from all languages, may contain cognates, items sharing concepts and with overlapping lexemes. Because cognates likely relate at the lemma level also, this research proposed the Cognate Continuum, a categorization of cognates and noncognates in the bilingual mental lexicon. The Cognate Continuum includes three sets of cognates:

(i) true cognates have the closest phonology and syntax.

(ii) lemma cognates have close syntax …

How Many Ways Can You Vocalize Emotion? Introducing An Audio Corpus Of Acted Emotion, Logan Ricks Kowallis

Theses and Dissertations

Emotion recognition from facial expressions has been thoroughly explored and explained through decades of research, but emotion recognition from vocal expressions has yet to be fully explained. This project builds on previous experimental approaches to create a large audio corpus of acted vocal emotion. With a large enough sample size, both in number of speakers and number of recordings per speaker, new hypotheses can be explored for differentiating emotions. Recordings from 131 subjects were collected and made available in an online corpus under a Creative Commons license. Thirteen acoustic features from 120 subjects were used as dependent variables in a …

Fictive Daughters And Sons, Celibate Priests And Nuns: How Religious Tongzhi And Clergy In Taiwan Navigate Familial Obligations, Gavin Fisher

Theses and Dissertations

Great progress for the rights of tongzhi(sexually and gender-nonconforming people) has occurred in Taiwan in the past two decades, culminating in the legalization of same-sex marriage in 2019. However, it is still not uncommon for parents to take their tongzhi son or daughter to see a spirit medium or psychiatrist in an attempt to ‘cure’ them of their same-sex attraction. In Confucian ideology, which is central to the culture of Taiwan, a filial son or daughter is one who marries heterosexually and produces progeny to continue the family line. Tongzhi who do not do so are therefore violating this …

Military Communities And Natural Hazards In The United States, Logan Lee

Theses and Dissertations

The vulnerability and resilience of communities to hazards is a concept that has gained traction in the research community in recent decades. Climate change, combined with increasing damages from natural hazards, has energized researchers and practitioners alike to identify the risks to people and places from future losses. Military communities support large military bases and are composed of service members, their families, and civilian populations alike. Due to the presence of military installations and military populations, the characteristics of the population and influences in military communities are unique. However, there is a gap in current research to assess whether the …

Essays In The Economics Of Tournaments, Eren Bilen

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation consists of three essays that focus on tournaments, incentives, and performance. The first essay presents evidence of cheating that took place in online examinations during COVID-19 lockdowns and proposes two solutions with and without a camera for the cheating problem based on the experience accumulated by online chess communities over the past two decades. The best implementable solution is a uniform online exam policy where a camera capturing each students computer screen and room is a requirement.

The second essay investigates the "superstar effect" using observations from chess tournaments. Superstars exist in many places. In competition, they might …

Essays In Health And Behavior, Zehra Çagıl Valencia Lopez

Theses and Dissertations

I study decision-making in healthcare choices and competitions. In my analysis, I use both quasi-experimental and experimental methods. In the first chapter, I investigate the effects of C-sections on babies and their mothers. Using administrative data from South Carolina, I exploit the breech position to isolate variation in C-sections that is uncorrelated with the ex-ante health of the infant and mother. I find that a C-section increases the probability of abnormal conditions for babies immediately after birth. However, there are no significant effects on babies’ future health conditions after birth. Mothers who deliver by C-section are more likely to develop …

Elementary School Counselors Experiences Working With Students With Emotional/Behavioral Disorders: A Qualitative Dissertation, Esther Diane Mccartney

Theses and Dissertations

Students with emotional/behavioral disorders have identified disruptive behaviors that negatively impact their academic performance. The US Department of Education and the American School Counselor Association have supported the use of school-wide Multitiered Systems of Support (MTSS) to reinforce pro-social behaviors for all students, but to also ensure the development of targeted and intensive interventions for students who need more support. As stakeholders, school counselors are often involved in the development and implementation of MTSS’s tiered interventions to provide support to all students, especially those with disabilities. Using consensual qualitative research study, the research team aimed to examine elementary school counselor’s …

The Determinants And Consequences Of Foreign Direct Investment, Alexandra Dinu Troidl

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines the regional economic effects of foreign direct investment (FDI). FDI is known to have benefits for both national and regional economies. These benefits include an increasing number of higher paying jobs, productivity spillovers for local firms, and elevated economic development (SelectUSA, 2020). Many governments compete to attract large FDI projects, often through the use of controversial incentive packages. Incentives are criticized because it is not clear that they affect the location of FDI and furthermore, whether the benefit of incentives outweigh the costs (Bartik, 2018).

In the first paper, I assess the impact of incentives on the …

Patterned Adolescent Socially Deviant Behavior, Raymond B. Smith

Theses and Dissertations

Research suggests that most adolescent youth AY (AY) will engage in socially deviant behavior (SDB) beginning from ages 10-14, peak in rate of participation at 16-17, and begin to desist thereafter (ages 17 and older). AY participation in SDB varies by frequency and severity, ranging from minor acts such as smoking cigarettes to behaviors that threaten the safety of self and others. Most AY do not participate in SDB to harm, however, but instead are attempting to express autonomous function from parental and adult oversight. During adolescence, youth become aware of their physical transformation to adulthood and growing sense of …

Politics Of Belonging: Identity, Integration, And Spatial Practices Of Algerian Immigrants And Their Descendants In Paris, France, Elizabeth Nelson

Theses and Dissertations

Using a geographic framework, this dissertation explores how Algerian immigrants and their descendants perform identity and negotiate belonging in French society. Bringing together critical theorizations of race, identity, space, and place, this work investigates what it means to be a racialized minority in a postcolonial context and to learn and experience the boundaries of ‘Frenchness.’ It is based on the narratives of Algerian immigrants who have migrated to Paris, France, and their French-born children. The empirical evidence of the case studies highlights the myriad ways in which Algerian immigrants and their descendants encounter and structure their interactions with French society, …

The Inescapable Effects Of Discourse As Knowledge And Power: Refugee Youth’S Resistance To “The System” In Pursuit Of Higher Education, Fallon Puckett

Theses and Dissertations

Employing a Foucauldian inflected analytic framework, I examine how youth resettled in and around Unity, NC, ambivalently managed racializing discourses associated with being ‘refugee’ as they pursued access to higher education (HE). Like many scholars who are drawn to post-structuralist concepts, I understand ‘discourse’ to be a form of knowledge and power, which operates through institutions implicated in advancing forms of self-government. In my video-conferenced interviews with youth they revealed cogent interpretations of the many ways these different U.S. governmental (and some non-governmental) institutions operated in their lives as “the System.” In the particular case of refugee youth, they used …

The Role Of Sexting In The Development Of Romantic Relationships, Max Bretscher

Theses and Dissertations

Using Knapp's stage theory of relationship communication, this pilot study examines "sexting" in the broader framework of relationship development, from initiation to termination. Likert-scale questions (1 = highly unlikely; 2 = highly likely) and open-ended questions were administered through Qualtrics to a small population (N = 45) of undergraduate mass communication students to determine on what communication technology, and in which stage(s) of relationships, is sexting most likely to occur. Quantitative results showed that Snapchat was considered the most appropriate medium for sexts (M = 4.60), followed by texting (4.27). Research that these mediums are used when relationships reach a …

It’S /Tʃuzdeɪ/, Innit?: Yod Coalescence In British English, Jenna Rose Rees-White

Theses and Dissertations

Previous research on British English (BE) has shown that variation in dialects stems from both regional and social differences (Hughes & Trudgill, 1979; Kwon, 2006; Glain, 2012; and others). For instance, if a speaker identifies as middle- to upper-class in the UK, they are more likely to use RP (Received Pronunciation) than a speaker who identifies with a lower-class social status. This, and other variables, accounts for variability among regionally similar but phonologically different British dialects.

This thesis analyzes the use of Yod Coalescence (YC), a phonological phenomenon that focuses on C-/ju/ sequences and their tendencies to drop yod and …

Pre-Existing Anxiety And Vestibular Symptoms: The Relationship To Coordination, Balance, And Reaction Time In College Athletes, Sydney Danielle Hurt

Theses and Dissertations

A growing body of literature suggests that certain pre-existing physical and mental health conditions can contribute to significant differences in important areas of performance among athletes, such as reaction time and balance. These findings have important implications for concussion testing protocols, as factors that potentially skew performance could place the health of athletes at risk by resulting in inaccurate diagnosis or premature return to play following a head injury. Symptoms of both anxiety and vestibular dysfunction, such as dizziness and vertigo, are frequently reported problems in the adult population, and research has documented notable symptom overlap between these two conditions. …

State Fragility And Sustainable Development Goals In Egypt, Mahmoud Elmakkawe

Theses and Dissertations

This study discusses the problem of state fragility in Egypt and its relationship with sustainable development goals from 2006 to 2016 through utilizing data from relevant literature and reports. Qualitatively analyzing the indicators of the two main variables: fragility and sustainable development goals, the study concludes that Egypt remains politically fragile despite various relative advancements on sustainable development goals recorded. While some progress has been made on multiple socioeconomic indicators throughout the period specified, Egypt still shows an alarming level of fragility, particularly, when it comes to political aspects of democratic governance that include security, justice, rule of law, and …

People Who Mistake Dogma For Reason: Development And Validation Of The Pseudo-Rationalism Scale, Han Wool Jung

Theses and Dissertations

Pseudo-rationalism is defined as a distorted ideology that believes reason or rationality is superior to other components of minds (especially, emotion), which may lead to the overestimation of one’s own rational ability and underestimation of others’ rationality. Such a trait would be similar to rigidity or closed-mindedness measurable with other existing scales, but also is expected to have some distinctive characteristics compared to them because it is based on a certain myth in terms of reason. Also, if the psychological trait of pseudo-rationalism exists, it is anticipated as a byproduct of a certain egocentric world-view represented by naïve realism. This …

"I Thought That We Could Nurture The Nature Out Of Our Son": Making Meaning Of Parenting In The Narratives Of Parents Of Children In Residential Treatment, Jared V. Worwood

Theses and Dissertations

This study implements relational dialectics theory to explore the meaning of parenting from the perspective of parents who had enrolled a child in a residential treatment program. Contrapuntal analysis of six interviews revealed two discourses competing to make meaning of parenting. The Discourse of Demanding Parenting Ideals (DDPI) consisted of two themes: relentless sacrifice and complete responsibility, whereas themes of boundary-setting and acceptance compose the Discourse of Realistic Best Effort (DRBE). Discursive interplay between these discourses occurred in the forms of diachronic separation, synchronic interplay, and discursive transformation to make meaning of parenting and hold theoretical and practical implications.

Empathic Listening Processes In Couple Therapy: A Task Analysis Of Effective Interventions By Therapists In Training, Samuel Ryland

Theses and Dissertations

Listening is a fundamental and deceptively complicated component of talk therapy that has received very little specific research attention. The work of Carl Rogers and others promotes the importance of empathic listening to create safety and process client experiences, and several models identify its importance in processing and regulating client emotions (especially in couple therapy, where empathic listening can disrupt rigid conflict cycles and model coregulation skills). Much of the dysregulation and resistance we see in therapy may be related to a perceived lack of safety caused by persistent conflict or previous trauma, explained by the unconscious processes of the …

The Effects Of U.S. Fiscal Policy On Income Inequality ( 1913 – 2013 ), J.D. Lewis

Theses and Dissertations

Income inequality in the United States has reached a level not seen since the Great Depression. Some academics and lawmakers suggest that growing inequality is due to changes in fiscal policy, arguing that cuts in taxes and government spending have reduced the inequality-mitigating effect of fiscal redistribution. While older research provides some support for this argument, newer research suggests otherwise. This disagreement in the literature led me to ask, How has fiscal policy affected income inequality in the United States during the last century? This study seeks to answer this question using data from Piketty et al. (2018), which includes …

"I Understand, Honey": Perceived Spousal Empathy's Moderating Influence On The Links Between Depression And Marital Satisfaction And Marital Satisfaction And Physical Health, F. Javier Celestino

Theses and Dissertations

An adapted version of the Vulnerability-Stress-Adaptation model was used as a theoretical guide for this study, which proposes that adaptive processes exist and can moderate relationships between enduring vulnerabilities and different outcomes. Relationships of interest include the negative link between depression and marital satisfaction and the positive link between marital satisfaction and physical health. An adaptive process of interest is empathy, due to its well-researched positive impact on mental, relational, and physical health. This study examined whether perceived spousal empathy (i.e., the empathy perceived by one spouse coming from their spouse) had any moderating effects on the previously mentioned links. …

Exceptional Paternal American Heroes Triumph Over Big Bad Terrorists ( Again ): The Storied Episodes Of Three Presidential Addresses Announcing The Elimination Of Another Middle Eastern Terrorist Threat, Maura Freeman

Theses and Dissertations

In 2001, the United States of America was the target of a vicious terrorist attack. In 2003, President George W. Bush announced that Americans were the mighty heroes responsible for capturing Saddam Hussein and bringing him to justice, even though Hussein was not the terrorist responsible for 9/11. Eight years later, President Barack Obama broke the news that Americans succeeded in assassinating Osama bin Laden, the true villain who orchestrated 9/11. One administration later, President Donald Trump proclaimed Americans had intervened to protect the world by eliminating another terrorist threat, Qasem Soleimani. I analyze these three presidential addresses as episodes …