Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Ready To Fly: Voices Of International Graduate Students At The University Of North Dakota, Laura Zucca

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate international graduate students' perspectives regarding their experiences at the University of North Dakota. Seven students were selected with a convenience sample. Students' interviews were transcribed and analyzed using a qualitative phenomenological approach. Acculturation served as a conceptual framework to contextualize the study and provide a scholarly foundation. The following five themes emerged from the data analysis: (1) International graduate students have complex professional and personal motivations for moving to the United States. (2) International graduate students encounter several difficulties, which are often related to linguistic, academic, and cultural differences. (3) International graduate …

The Perceptions Of Protégés Regarding The Impact Of The North Dakota Teacher Mentoring Program On K-12 Pedagogy, Pamela Ann Walker

Theses and Dissertations

This study explored the perceptions of the protégés concerning the impact of their participation in the North Dakota Teacher Mentoring Program during the 2005-2006 school year. Data concerning mentor-protege relationships from across the entire state of North Dakota were used to answer the research questions.

The research questions were developed using the North Dakota Teacher Mentoring Log (NDTML). The NDTML is divided into three major categories. They are goals, activities, and focus. The tables developed from the information gathered from the categories illustrated the importance of a mentoring program and the impact it has had on the teaching community of …

Consequences Of Normative Body Image Dissatisfaction: The Development Of Two Scales, Grace Y. Kim

Theses and Dissertations

Body image dissatisfaction is often seen as a predictor variable for the development of eating disorders; however, this study contends that the consequences of body dissatisfaction itself are problematic. Body image dissatisfaction of both men and women can have negative effects on psychological health and well being. This study examined the literature on body image and body image dissatisfaction, specifically emphasizing various mental health consequences as well as the influence of sex and sexual orientation. The purpose of this paper is twofold: to investigate the consequences of normative body image dissatisfaction among non-clinical adult populations, and to offer initial validation …

Longitudinal Course Of Body Dissatisfaction In Undergraduate Females At Brigham Young University, Joy Wiechmann

Theses and Dissertations

This research project examined the longitudinal course of body dissatisfaction among undergraduate females at Brigham Young University (BYU) using the Body Satisfaction Questionnaire (BSQ).The research also examined what percentage of undergraduate females have BSQ ratings in the clinically significant range and whether body dissatisfaction ratings varied based on the environment in which the student lived. Results indicate that no significant change in body dissatisfaction occurred over time, nor did living environment appear to play a role in BSQ scores. Results also showed that at any given time over 34% of women on BYU campus have BSQ scores in the clinically …

Regional Theatre Patronage: The Efficacy Of Integrated Marketing Communication On The 18-24 Age Cohort, Katherine A. Chronister

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this investigation was to determine if an integrated marketing communication plan coupled with additional theatre education programs would increase patron growth and increase ticket sales in regional professional theatres and if the younger age cohort (18-24) will support regional professional theatre if supplemental programming meets their needs. This information was ascertained by conducting in-depth interviews over the phone with marketing/communication professionals at four separate regional theatres in each region of the United States. Fifty intercept surveys were also administered at two universities in the tri-state area to the 18-24 age group to see what motivated them to …

The Relationship Between Family Composition And Social Behavior For Students With Mild Disabilities In Schools, Amanda Clark

Theses and Dissertations

Previous research identifies significant differences in children's problem behavior across various family structures, particularly noting more challenging behaviors in children from single parent families. Utilizing a pre-existing data set of Behavioral Objective Sequence (BOS) scores, this study investigated teacher ratings of social behavioral skills in students with mild disabilities, focusing on differences between groups of students from a variety of family compositions. Results indicated no significant difference in social behavioral skills among children from different family groups, taking into account the student's age. The covariate of age was significant on each of six BOS subscales, suggesting that children develop and …

Fremont Finery: Exchange And Distribution Of Turquoise And Olivella Ornaments In The Parowan Valley And Beyond, Cady Brooke Jardine

Theses and Dissertations

The Fremont tradition developed on the northern Colorado Plateau and eastern Great Basin between A.D. 1 and A.D. 1350 (Talbot 2000a). Research on exotics in the Fremont area, specifically turquoise and Olivella shell, has been sporadic until recently (Hughes and Bennyhoff 1986; McDonald 1994; Janetski 2002). In this thesis, I present new data on Olivella and turquoise artifacts found throughout the Fremont region, including the Parowan Valley sites, Nephi Mounds, and Kay's Cabin, as well as a spatial distribution of Olivella and turquoise in the Fremont area. I performed microprobe analysis on blue-green artifacts from Kay's Cabin and found most …

A Family Literacy Curriculum For Community Esl Courses, George William Clair Bailey

Theses and Dissertations

This project describes the piloting of a family literacy curriculum developed for use in a community ESL course. The purpose of this curriculum was to teach family-literacy-oriented English to students in the community ESL courses that are part of Brigham Young University's TESOL Teacher Training Course (TTTC) held at the University Parkway Center on BYU's campus. Students in BYU's TESOL Graduate Certificate program are required to complete a one-semester teaching practicum in the TTTC program. This program regularly offers English courses that enroll approximately 100 ESL students from the local community who are non-native speakers of English. These ESL students …

An 828 Year Streamflow Reconstruction For The Jordan River Drainage Basin Of Northern Utah, Bryan P. Tikalsky

Theses and Dissertations

Bryan Tikalsky Department of Geography Master of Science Mountain water resources are essential to those living along the Salt Lake City urban corridor. Water resource planners base their policy on twentieth century climate conditions and streamflow records. Often these records only account for a small amount of the natural variability in streamflow and climate. By utilizing dendrochronology this study seeks to better understand variability of streamflow in the Jordan River Drainage Basin over the last 828 years. A GIS model was used to identify potential sampling sites where tree growth would be sensitive to climate and factors affecting stream run-off. …

Factors Contributing To The Shortage Of Speech-Language Pathologists In Utah Schools, Stephanie Harris

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined factors contributing to Utah's critical shortage of school-based speech-language pathologists. Specifically, this study focused on the following three constructs: (a) stress levels among professionals currently in the field, (b) attrition and the reasons professionals leave their positions, and (c) factors at the university level. Stress among Utah's speech-language pathologists was assessed using the Speech-Language Pathologist Stress Inventory (Fimian, Lieberman, & Fasteneau, 1991). Of the 230 potential participants, 97 completed and returned questionnaires. Results indicated that Utah's school-based speech-language pathologists experience less overall stress than a normative sample of speech-language pathologists throughout the United States; however, Utah's professionals …

The Effect Of Video Self-Modeling On The Compliance Rates Of High School Students With Developmental Disabilities, Jacob Ammon Aukai Figueira

Theses and Dissertations

People with developmental disabilities must develop the ability to maintain socially acceptable behavior in order to become contributing, accepted members of society at large. Research indicates that compliance, or following directions, is a keystone behavior, which, if learned, may significantly decrease the occurrence of behavior difficulties in students. Many studies of individuals with disabilities have shown a dramatic increase across a wide range of academic and social skills using video self-modeling (VSM), a technique in which students watch edited videos of themselves performing skills correctly or at high rates. Despite the importance of compliance for individuals with disabilities and the …

Planning Gone Hog Wild: Mega-Hog Farm In A Mountain West County, Jeffrey Melvin Sanders

Theses and Dissertations

Lacking the natural amenities “New West" counties, some rural communities have attempted to attract land use activities that are normally seen as undesirable. One example of these undesirable industries is the hog concentrated animal feeding operation, or CAFO. While a number of studies have explored the socio-economic and environmental aspects of hog farms, few studies have focused on the planning process and evaluated its effectiveness in dealing with the threats and challenges that a CAFO poses. This qualitative study used interviews, observations, public meeting minutes, and other written sources of data to evaluate whether or not a rural, western community, …

Teacher Perceptions Of The Social Validity Of The Peaceable Schools Model, Rachelle Marie Pieper

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the social validity of the Peaceable Schools model, which includes positive behavior support and social skills training. Data were collected through subjective evaluation using an open-ended survey given to teachers at two secondary schools. Results show that teachers perceived evidence of social validity in the areas of social significance, comprehensiveness, relevance, treatment integrity, and social acceptability. While weaknesses were also expressed in the areas of social acceptability, feasibility, and practicality, teachers perceived overall improvement in students' social skills and saw more strengths than weaknesses. Outcomes suggest that the Peaceable Schools model has …

Handling And Analysis Of Public Comments In Natural Resource Planning, Lisette Borchert Thurgood

Theses and Dissertations

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1970 required public input in any federal planning process or action. Consequently, natural resource planning can be characterized as more of a complex situation in recent years due to the increasing involvement of the number of constituents who want to be heard. Likewise, the public wants to know their ideas have been heard and considered. Unfortunately, there is very little information available which identifies how the BLM handles and analyzes public scoping comments that are required under NEPA. The purpose of this research is to identify the handling and analysis methodology used by …

Perceptions Of Value: An Analysis Of New Jersey's Public And Private Four-Year Colleges And Universities To Determine If Adherence To Recognized Design Principles Increases The Perceived Value Of Their Institution, Kathryn Marie Ponzi

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine how closely four-year New Jersey colleges and universities, both public and private, adhere to general standards for home page layout and design. This study also looked to determine if adherence to proper design standards increase the perceived quality of the institution. Field experiment participants rated the home pages of six institutions chosen by the researcher in her content analysis. Using Likert-type questions, 23 students rated the home pages of the colleges and universities, yielding results supporting the initial claim: the more closely an institution adheres to certain home page design standards, the …

An Evaluation Of Brigham Young University's Local Tesol Internship Program, Laura Kathleen Steeby

Theses and Dissertations

An evaluation of BYU's Local TESOL Minor Internship program shows the strengths and weaknesses of this academic internship program. Students are required to complete 150 hours of TESOL-related work outside of their courses. The interns volunteer in different English-teaching programs in the area. Internship hours include the time in the classroom, preparation, materials development, as well as the time in the Linguistics 496R course. The interns are required to have most of their minor classes finished before they complete their internship so that their internship can be a capstone to and an application of what they have learned thus far. …

Sexual Satisfaction In Older Marriages: Effects Of Family-Of-Origin Distress And Marital Distress, Luke Elias Wilson

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine how sexual satisfaction in older marriages (marriages with at least one spouse between the ages of 55 and 75) was affected by family-of-origin distress (recent measure of recollection of childhood experiences) and marital distress (measure of current marital relationship) for husbands and wives. The hypotheses of this study were that both family-of-origin distress and marital distress would have negative effects on sexual satisfaction for older couples, with marital distress having a direct, negative effect on sexual satisfaction and with family-of-origin distress having an indirect, negative effect on sexual satisfaction through its influence …

Stereotyped Seniors: The Portrayal Of Older Characters In Teen Movies From 1980-2006, Dawn Leah Magoffin

Theses and Dissertations

This content analysis examined the 60 most popular teen movies from the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s to determine how older people (those over 55) are portrayed. This study found that some portrayals of older people in teen movies were favorable. For example, the most positive finding of the current study was the physical portrayal of older characters. The overwhelming majority of older characters were portrayed as active and healthy and rarely portrayed as sick or ugly. The negative physical stereotypes associated with children's media, such as “toothless/missing teeth" and older characters' reliance on physical aids were mostly absent from teen …

A Correlation Of Pronunciation Learning Strategies With Spontaneous English Pronunciation Of Adult Esl Learners, Grant Taylor Eckstein

Theses and Dissertations

In the last thirty years, language learning strategies have been used in the field of English as a Second Language (ESL) to help learners autonomously improve their English listening, speaking, reading, and writing. However, language learning strategies have not been applied to pronunciation learning in a large scale manner. This study attempted to bridge this gap by investigating the usage of pronunciation learning strategies among adult ESL learners. A strategic pronunciation learning scale (SPLS) was administered to 183 adult ESL learners in an Intensive English Program. Their scores on the SPLS were compared with their scores of spontaneous pronunciation on …

A Web-Based Tool For Oral Practice And Assessment Of Grammatical Structures, Heather Colleen Torrie

Theses and Dissertations

The grammar course objectives at Brigham Young University's English Language Center (ELC) are a list of grammar structures for each level that students are expected to be able to master. These objectives currently are only measured by pencil-paper grammar tests, providing information regarding receptive grammar ability only. Therefore, there is a need for an oral grammar assessment to measure productive grammar ability, providing diagnostic and achievement information about the specific grammar objectives. This project is a web-based oral grammar assessment tool that enables teachers to assess students' mastery of the structures covered in the ELC grammar classes. The core of …

The Development Of Ready-A (Ready For Adolescents): An Adolescent Premarital Education Inventory, Lorinda A. Gutierrez

Theses and Dissertations

Learning about romantic relationships can be one of the central features of adolescence. However, there are not many useful and scholarly tools for adolescents to evaluate themselves and their relationship competence. Such tools can be helpful in the premarital education process. READY is a premarital assessment questionnaire instrument that is used for such purposes but it was designed for use with adults ages 18 and over. In this study READY for Adolescents (READY-A) was developed as a revision and extension of READY with age-appropriate questions to be used with adolescents. A review of literature on adolescent romantic relationships and factors …

The Impact Of Video Self-Modeling On Conversational Skills With Adolescent Students With Severe Disabilities, Megan Elizabeth Sangster

Theses and Dissertations

Video self-modeling has been found to be effective in increasing appropriate behaviors, increasing task fluency, and decreasing inappropriate behaviors. During video self-modeling, a student is filmed completing a task and then mistakes, prompts, and negative behaviors are edited from the video. When the edited video is viewed by the subject student, the student views a perfect model of him or herself successfully completing the given task. Video self-modeling has been used predominately with participants with autism spectrum disorder. This study is a replication of a previous study in which the effectiveness of video self-modeling and video peer modeling was compared …

Loneliness And Use Of Coping Mechanisms Among U.S. Military Personnel Deployed To The Middle East, David Abraham Shwalb

Theses and Dissertations

Considering that the greatest fear of deploying military personnel is separation from family, an obvious and overlooked psychological phenomenon that merits further investigation is loneliness. In this study, 131 US troops completed the UCLA Loneliness Scale, Anxiety Control Questionnaire, and a leisurely activity participation scale to predict loneliness with participation in non-work activities in the presence of another moderator (locus of control) and various demographic factors. As hypothesized, the results indicated that 1) the best non-work activity predictors of loneliness were emailing friends and listening to music, 2) external locus of control was positively correlated with loneliness and internal locus …

The Development Of A Literacy Curriculum For Adult Liberian Refugees, Kristen Marie Kohler

Theses and Dissertations

From 2003 to 2006, Tucson, Arizona became the new home of many Liberian refugees. Because of civil war in their homeland and ensuing years spent in refugee camps, these refugees had not had many opportunities for literacy development. Tucson had several literacy and ESL programs available; however, none of these programs was meeting the Liberians' particular needs. For my project, I designed and implemented a literacy curriculum for the Liberian refugees in Tucson. In preparation for developing my curriculum, I not only took coursework but also thoroughly reviewed the literature on literacy learning and instruction for first language learners, second …

Does Alcohol Inhibit Posttraumatic Stress Symptomology In Victims Of Sexual Assault?, Sandra Hargesheimer

Theses and Dissertations

The current study examines whether or not alcohol consumption during a sexual assault suppresses PTSD symptomology as well as the subjective impact of the assault. One hundred and fifty-one women participated in the study. The first hypothesis was that women in the alcohol condition would endorse less PTSD symptoms on a PTSD measure than women who were not consuming alcohol at the time of their assault experience. The second hypothesis was that women who were consuming alcohol at the time of their assault would subjectively rate the impact of the assault as having less of an impact than women who …

Gender Differences & The Effect Of Promotional Techniques On Fan Attendance At Mlb Games During A Losing Season, Melanie Mount

Theses and Dissertations

The thesis' purposes were to (a) determine what promotional techniques engender ticket sales during a MLB team's losing season and (b) discover gender differences associated with promotions and game attendance. All losing teams of the 2006 season were analyzed, 16 total.

Promotional schedules, interviews with MLB promotions practitioners and gender focus panels provided the primary research for this study. The quantitative data from content analyzing promotional schedules were charted by how often promotions were offered and ranked by attendance popularity. Qualitative data gathered from interviews and focus panels provided detailed insight into promotional development, targeted audiences and gender preferences.

Results …

Self-Esteem As A Predictor Of Treatment Outcome Among Women With Eating Disorders, Suzanne F. Plowman

Theses and Dissertations

Current empirical evidence suggests that true recovery from eating disorders is not possible without a corresponding improvement in body image and self-esteem. Ten studies in current literature evaluate this relationship between self-esteem and clinical eating disorders during inpatient treatment or during follow-up studies but do not provide both pre- (baseline) and post-treatment self-esteem scores. As a result, many questions about the nature of the relationship between eating disorders and self-esteem remain unanswered. The purpose of this study was to empirically investigate whether a comprehensive measure of self-esteem, given to women at the beginning of inpatient treatment for eating disorders, reliably …

Eating And Substance Use: A Comparison Of Latter-Day Saint And Non-Latter-Day Saint College Females, Monika Sandberg

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined differences between Latter-Day Saint (LDS) and non-Latter-Day Saint (non-LDS) females across six universities in the United States regarding desire to engage in substance use and eating behaviors in response to negative emotion. Additionally, this study explored differences between LDS and non-LDS females regarding body image, as well as body image differences between LDS females residing inside Utah and outside Utah. Findings suggested that non-LDS females were more likely to experience increased urges to use substances in response to negative emotion than LDS females, consistent with LDS doctrine teaching the avoidance of substance use. LDS females also did …

Utah School Psychologists: Self-Reported Reasons For Retention And Job Satisfaction, Lisa A. Dickison

Theses and Dissertations

This study focused on the level of job satisfaction reported by Utah school psychologists and their reasons for staying in their profession. An existing survey was modified and distributed to 119 of the 238 licensed school psychologists in Utah to obtain information on this topic. Sixty-nine school psychologists completed and returned the questionnaire (58% return rate). Based on their feedback, the top five reasons Utah school psychologists stay in their profession were (a) feeling the success and joy of helping students, (b) counseling with students, (c) working one-on-one with students, (d) taking vacation time during summers and holidays, and (e) …

A Public Relations Plan To Profitable Fund Raising Using Information From The Previous Fund Raisers Of Two Non-Profit Organizations As Examples: Literacy Volunteers Of America, Cape-Atlantic, Inc. And The Community Foodbank Of New Jersey, Southern Branch, Gia J. Porter

Theses and Dissertations

Fund raising is an important component used by many non-profit organizations. For some non-profits, it is the one thing that keeps the organization viable from year to year.

The fund raisers of two non profit organizations, Literacy Volunteers of America, Cape-Atlantic, Inc. and The Community FoodBank of New Jersey, Southern Branch were used to determine which fund raisers are more profitable.

Fund raising events from both non-profit organizations for the past three years have been listed. This was done to compare events held by the two non-profit organizations and the money raised from those events.

A survey was also given …