Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Secularization As A Decline In Religious Authority Over Gender, Catherine E. Meyers

Theses and Dissertations

Recent secularization debates have helped to interpret the changing influence of religion over time and over social life. I argue that Chaves' (1994) conception of secularization, that secularization occurs as a decline in religious authority, is an effective theoretical tool for describing religious change over time. Using GSS data and the example of gender ideology, I attempt to illustrate this concept and argue that this view of secularization, combined with a multidimensional approach to gender, is necessary to more fully explain the changing relationship among religion and gender over time.

Case Study Of A Client Diagnosed With Major Depressive Disorder, Barbara Ann Marie Allison

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the best practice for a client diagnosed with major depressive disorder who was referred for treatment at a community mental health facility. The client was assessed, diagnosed, and a treatment plan was developed. Implemented treatment consisted of combined cognitive behavioral oriented psychotherapy and psychotropic medication. The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II) was used to assess changes in depressive symptoms. Results indicated a significant decline in depressive symptoms over the course of treatment. At the onset of treatment, the client's BDI scores were in the clinically depressed range, while at the conclusion of treatment …

The Development Of A Certified Nursing Assistant English For Specific Purposes Curriculum: Teaching Materials And Methods, Nancy Waireana Tarawhiti

Theses and Dissertations

After careful review of English for Specific Purposes (ESP) and English for Medical Purposes (EMP) literature, I assisted in the development of a curriculum for an ESP Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) Preparation course. The course participants were non-native English speaking employees of Utah Valley Regional Medical Center (UVRMC), currently working in the department of housekeeping, wanting to further their employment opportunities. The ESP CNA Preparation course was 12 weeks duration, three days per week, 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm.

My contribution to the curriculum was the development of teaching materials and methods and I used two guiding questions to assist …

Self-Access Centers: Maximizing Learners' Access To Center Resources, Benjamin L. Mcmurry

Theses and Dissertations

The Self-Access Study Center (SASC) at Brigham Young University's English Language Center (ELC) is a self-access lab where students can work independently to improve their language skills. Although some students have discovered how to use the SASC effectively, the majority of them appear to be unaware of the resources available in the center. Their trips to the SASC end up becoming more like a cyber cafe situation, where friends send email and chat online. If the SASC is used merely as a computer lab, then students are not using the resources available to fine-tune their English skills. The current project …

Student Psychological Distress In A Career Exploration Course, Roger H. Belisle

Theses and Dissertations

A gap in the literature exists on the connection between an individual's career and non-career domains. Even less research exists on the topic of career development and how it relates to an individual's mental health. Accordingly, this study sought to investigate the connection between career issues and mental health by exploring the psychological distress levels of students enrolled in a career exploration course. During the course, students completed a bi-weekly online survey, the Outcome Questionnaire (OQ-45). Results support the possible connection between career issues and mental health and also show that for certain populations, career guidance interventions may decrease an …

An Exploration Of The Interactions Of Improvers And Deteriorators In The Process Of Group Therapy: A Qualitative Analysis, Laura Lee Hoffmann

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the interactions of individuals who showed symptom improvement and those who showed symptom deterioration during the course of 12-14 sessions of group process psychotherapy. Both general group themes, as well as themes specific to improvers and deteriorators were found. General group themes included (a) an initial difficulty distinguishing between improvers and deteriorators, and (b) a tendency for group to focus on past or future focus versus present group issues. Specific themes for deteriorators included (a) substantial early disclosure in the group process, (b) open praise of the process of group, (c) the stated expectation of sharing deep …

Facing The Caree/Family Dichotomy: Traditional College Women's Perspectives, Lisa Michelle Leavitt

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study explored the experience of 32 traditional college freshmen women as they sought to choose a career with the idea of balancing career and family in the future. A traditional woman was defined as a woman whose central value system and cultural mores emphasize homemaking and childrearing as their primary role. Guided interviews were conducted to obtain in-depth descriptions of participants' experience. The interviews were transcribed and interpreted using a synthesis of qualitative methods based on Kvale's method. The six themes were as follows: 1. The concept of balancing careers and family life is not being discussed or …

Is The Party Over? Unmarried Fatherhood And Drug And Alcohol Use, Jonathan A. Jarvis

Theses and Dissertations

Using waves two and three of the National Survey of Adolescent Males (1990 and 1995) I examine the effects of marriage, paternity and father involvement on the use of drugs and alcohol by young men. Despite the importance of fatherhood as an adult role, I argue that commitment to the role of fatherhood and not paternity itself is what alters behavior. I hypothesize that young men who assume responsibility for fathering their children are more likely to reduce their drug and alcohol use over time than young men who father children but do not assume the role of parent. Results …

When The Publisher Is A Politician; A Case Study Of The Idaho Falls Post Register's Coverage Of The 2002 Idaho Gubernatorial Campaign, Kristoffer D. Boyle

Theses and Dissertations

In March 2002, Idaho Falls Post Register owner/publisher Jerry Brady announced his intent to run as the Democratic challenger in the Idaho gubernatorial race. His decision left the newspaper and its editorial staff scrambling for an appropriate way to objectively cover the state's most prominent race involving the man who signed the checks. In an effort to meet this expectation, the newspaper established a detailed plan, which included Brady moving away from the newspaper's operations, both physically and editorially. Additionally, the Post Register brought in an outside media professional to monitor its coverage of the race and hosted several meetings …

The Creation And Formative Evaluation Of An Attachment-Based Parenting Education Website, April Steed

Theses and Dissertations

While there are numerous websites discussing attachment parenting in infancy, there are currently no interactive research-based websites devoted to attachment parenting throughout early childhood. To fill this need the author developed the Foundations of Parenting website (http://www.foundationsofparenting.org). Evaluation, a tool so far under-utilized by parenting education websites, is necessary for both quality control and improving websites. Thus, in addition to development of the website, the author also formatively evaluated the Foundations of Parenting program by using website-utilization tools and visitor feedback through an online survey to analyze utilization and visitor satisfaction. The website was well-used (674 unique visitors and 189 …

Materialism, Perceived Financial Problems, And Marital Satisfaction, Lukas R. Dean

Theses and Dissertations

While there has been a relatively large number of studies conducted to investigate associations between financial problems and marital outcomes, little research has been done to examine possible relationships between materialistic attitudes, perceived financial problems, and marital outcomes. This study has been designed to examine a conceptual model linking materialism, perceived financial problems, and relationship satisfaction among married couples. Data obtained from 600 married heterosexual couples who took the RELATE test fit the model well. Findings indicate that wives' materialism is negatively related to husbands' marital satisfaction. Husbands' and wives' materialism is positively related with increased perception of financial problems …

Sibling Influence On Adolescent Cigarette, Alcohol, And Marijuana Use, Benjamin G. Gibbs

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to estimate the association between sibling drug use and adolescent alcohol, cigarette, and marijuana use. Research is conducted using survey data from a probability sample of 4,987 adolescents in grades 9–12 in Utah. To account for the limited frequency of drug use among respondents, Poisson regression is used to estimate models for each type of drug. In support of current literature, findings indicate that having a sibling who uses drugs increases the frequency of drug use substantially, even when peer influences are taken into account. Significant sibling associations with adolescent drug use found in …

Perceived Impact Of The No Child Left Behind Act Of 2001 On Paraprofessionals, Heather Goodwin Nelson

Theses and Dissertations

Using the states' paraprofessional requirements, this study explored the effects of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) on the paraprofessionals' ability to assist in instruction as seen through the perceptions of paraprofessional and teacher teams. The literature review discloses data regarding the implementation of NCLB paraprofessional requirements into the accountability plans of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Tables synthesize the assessments used by states to meet NCLB paraprofessional requirements. The Council for Exceptional Children performance-based standards for paraeducators provides the framework for the development of two survey instruments, which measured the perceptions of paraprofessionals …

How Virtues And Values Affect Marital Intimacy, Natalie Jan Stevens

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to better understand how virtues and values affect marital intimacy. Ten married couples were given a marital satisfaction assessment and participated as individuals in 1-1/2 hour interviews which were audiotaped and then transcribed. Using grounded theory and also the constant comparative method, researchers were able to generate a theory involving a core theme of showing love for self and other, which strongly contributes to increased intimacy. This process is connected to living virtues and to becoming other-oriented. Two different ways of "being" were found to be connected both with showing love, living virtues, increasing …

Personality Predictors Of Relationship Satisfaction Among Engaged And Married Couples: An Analysis Of Actor And Partner Effects, Nicole L. Mead

Theses and Dissertations

With a sample of 3,436 engaged and married couples, this study explores the prediction of relationship satisfaction using the personality traits of neuroticism, depression, kindness, impulsivity, flexibility, self-esteem, and extraversion while utilizing controls for non-independent couple data in structural equation modeling. Both actor effects (the impact of an individual's personality on his or her own satisfaction) and partner effects (the impact of the partner's personality on satisfaction) are examined, including comparisons of the relative strength of each for males and females. A comparison is also made of engaged and married couples to determine if relationship status acts as a moderator. …

Triangulation Between Elderly Parents And Adult Children, Ryan J. Anderson

Theses and Dissertations

This study explored the extent of triangulation between elderly people and their adult children, and examines the relationship of triangulation with marital and individual outcomes such as problem solving, negative affective communication, time spent together, intimacy, depression, and marital satisfaction. Triangulation between adult children and elderly parents was found to be strongly related with negative outcomes for elderly parents in each of the dependent variables.

Beliefs, Practices, And Training In Marriage Preparation: A Comparison Between Members Of The Association Of Mormon Counselors And Psychotherapists (Amcap) And Select Protestant Clergy, Samuel L. Ashton

Theses and Dissertations

A sample of 127 members of the Association of Mormon Counselors and Psychotherapists (AMCAP) responded to a questionnaire regarding their beliefs, practices and training in premarital counseling (PMC). This study was a replication of a previous study of 226 clergy premarital counselors from four Protestant denominations by Jones, E.F., & Stahmann, R.F. (1994). The results of this study were compared with the results of the Jones & Stahmann study. Findings suggest that AMCAP members were less likely than Protestant clergy to believe that PMC should be required of all couples before marriage. AMCAP members and Protestant clergy both rated Enrichment, …

Computer-Aided Self-Access Pronunciation Materials Designed To Teach Stress In American English, Ann-Marie Krueger Bott

Theses and Dissertations

In recent years, increasing attention has been placed on providing pronunciation instruction that meets the communicative needs of nonnative speakers (NNSs) of English. Empirical research and pronunciation materials writers suggest that teaching suprasegmentals before segmentals to intermediate and advanced NNSs could be more beneficial in a shorter period of time. However, the majority of the materials available that emphasize suprasegmentals are textbook-based, relying principally on classroom settings and teacher feedback. The purpose of Pronunciation Progress: Stress in American English is to provide NNSs with pronunciation materials for self-access and student-directed learning environments. These materials are designed as a series of …

500 Essential English Words For Esl Missionaries, Carrie A. Thompson

Theses and Dissertations

In order to help ESL missionaries teach the gospel from their hearts using their own words, I have developed a 500-word list of core gospel vocabulary in English. To enhance the 500-word list, I included a lexicon with simple definitions, some grammatical information, and examples of the words in context. The resulting product complies with the standards for master's projects established by the Department of Linguistics and English Language. Published literature shows that the development of specialized corpora can be beneficial for students learning another language. Additionally, specialized corpora act as a catalyst for in-depth vocabulary analysis and the development …

Leaning Left: A Case Study Of Media Bias In The 2004 Presidential Election, Adam Lasecki

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract available.

Beliefs About The Education Of Children: A Comparison Of Hispanic Immigrant And Anglo-American Parents, Elodie Gisele Martine Bertola

Theses and Dissertations

In light of the fact that the number of Hispanic children enrolled in American schools is dramatically increasing and that these children are at higher risk of academic difficulty than any other group, the present study investigates the educational and child-rearing beliefs held by Hispanic parents. Understanding these beliefs is pivotal in any attempt to improve Latinos' educational attainment since current research recognizes that parental educational beliefs influence home-literacy practices, which in turn influence subsequent academic achievement. The research questions focus on two types of potential differences in terms of educational and child-rearing beliefs: (1)intercultural (Anglo-Americans vs. Hispanics), (2) intracultural …

A Pilot Study Considering The Impact Of Husband's Internet Based Pornography Use Upon Marital Adjustment, Satisfaction, And Intimacy Within A Clinical Sample., Anthony T. Alonzo

Theses and Dissertations

With increased access and use of pornography over the internet, the association between pornography use and marital distress needed to be examined in a quantitative manner. There was a need to discover if, and or how, marital relationships are impacted by internet pornography use. Assessment instruments were used to measure internet pornography use (Internet Sex Screen Test revised for pornography), marital adjustment (Marital Adjustment Test items #1 and #14), marital satisfaction (Revised Dyadic Adjustment Scale), and marital intimacy (Personal Assessment of Intimacy in Relationships). The results of this study suggested the following; there was a significant positive relationship between the …

A Study Of Seven Selected Chemical Engineering Facilities' Crisis Public Relations Plans, Heather D. O'Neill

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this thesis was to obtain what techniques are being used in the Philadelphia, PA area to handle crises in chemical engineering facilities. Related literature was reviewed to determine how others in the crisis public relations industry handle crisis.

The public relations contacts at 17 chemical engineering facilities were contacted to participate in the researcher's study, with seven completed responses. The seven participants completed questionnaires about the current public relations practices being used at their facilities. The information that they provided was useful in establishing commonalities among the different facilities.

This study will provide both public relations professionals …

Ethical Principles For A Sensitive Society, Catherine M. Toscano

Theses and Dissertations

The purposes of this study were (a) to discover ethical dilemmas faced in the media and how they affect society; and (b) to determine what new ethical principles need to be established for media to gain back trust from today's society. The author found that lower news reporting standards such as fabrication of information and sources, using false documents and failure to check facts caused members of society to become sensitive and question the integrity of news stations and reporters as well as the validity of news being reported. Because the press has lost the trust of the American people, …

Catastrophic Crisis Communication: A Study Of Hospital Crisis Planning Following The September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks, Daniel Matthew Lockwood

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine whether hospitals in southern New Jersey and throughout the United States were prepared to respond to catastrophic crisis situations and find out if hospitals have changed or improved crisis plans since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

To examine preparedness and improvement of crisis plans since September 11, 2001, the researcher employed qualitative and quantitative studies. The researcher conducted in-depth personal interviews with public relations specialists from four southern New Jersey hospitals and sent email surveys to 40 hospitals throughout the United States to find out if these facilities felt prepared to …

A Study Of How Students And Graduates Of The Public Relations Graduate Program Of Rowan University View The Graduate Program, Jessica Brittain

Theses and Dissertations

The Rowan University graduate school provides a Master's Degree program for public relations. The program offers students immersion in the areas of research, writing, problem solving, and planning. Also included in the program is a series of specialized modules, designed to allow students to experience many different aspects of public relations. Along with the courses, students are required to hold an internship to enrich the public relations experience. At the end of the program, students must pass a comprehensive exam to demonstrate the knowledge learned.

This study is to determine how the public relations graduate program is viewed by those …

A Survey Of Certified Athletic Trainers' Knowledge Base, Personal Experiences And Attitudes Toward Public Relations Methods, Christina Pozzi

Theses and Dissertations

This study's purpose was to determine athletic trainers' knowledge base, personal experiences and attitudes concerning public relations methods and their effectiveness in promoting the profession of athletic training.

One hundred fifteen athletic trainers completed a 14-question intercept survey. Results indicate that athletic trainers face difficulty promoting their profession without learning proper public relations techniques and which public relations methods are most effective reaching their target audiences.

Sixty-three percent of the respondents created a brochure/pamphlet; 17% distributed a newsletter and 68% have never written a news release. Most respondents (89%) are familiar with the term news release, while 69% have never …

An Evaluation Of A Service-Learning Approach To Assist In Achieving The Goals Of A Comprehensive Guidance Program, Kathryn Ann Stott

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was twofold: (a) to investigate how a service-learning class assisted in achieving the goals of a comprehensive guidance and development program in a junior high school, and (b) to examine the effects of a service-learning class on junior high school students. Thirty students who had been in the service-learning class participated in semi-structured interviews. Parents and teachers were also interviewed to cross-validate student perceptions. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed to identify core meanings. Using phenomenological analysis, eight major themes were identified: personal awareness, social skills development, learning skills, career interests, character education, application of …

A Study Of Small Business Public Relations Behavior To Ascertain A Need For A Do-It-Yourself Public Relations Web Site, William Pavlou Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

The purposes of this study were to (a) study the behavior of New Jersey small business owners and (b) use this information as primary research to ascertain a need for a do-it-yourself public relations Web site. A survey questionnaire was mailed to 75 New Jersey small business owners who were randomly selected from the New Jersey Directory of Small Businesses 2005 Directory. More than half of the New Jersey small business owners who were surveyed responded to this study.

The data collected in this study strongly supports the author's first hypothesis that small business owners believe public relations can contribute …

Sexual Assault At Rowan University, Kathleen Oriti

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to conduct a survey about sexual assault at Rowan University and to compare the survey results with reports from the Rowan University Crime Incidents Log. Data were collected anonymously from 531 male and female students from the Glassboro campus of Rowan University. Twenty-two students indicated they were sexually assaulted on or off campus from 2001 to March 2005. Three off-campus victims reported to police. None of the on-campus victims reported the crime to Rowan officials. Based on the results of this study, 5.2% of female students and 1.8% of male students surveyed indicated they …