Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

An Examination Of The Validity Of The Central Sensitization Inventory With Chronic Disabling Occupational Musculoskeletal Disorders, Yunhee Choi

Psychology Dissertations

Central Sensitivity Syndrome (CSS) includes a group of related conditions that share a common pathophysiological mechanism called central sensitization (e.g., fibromyalgia, irritable bowel syndrome, tension headache/migraine, etc.). Individuals with these conditions display increased pain sensitivity in response to painful stimuli, pain in response to normally non-painful stimuli, and expansion of the receptive field. Depression and anxiety frequently occur among individuals with CSS, as well as disturbed sleep, somatic symptoms and emotional distress. The Central Sensitization Inventory (CSI) is a newly developed self-report measure to assess the full array of 25 somatic and emotional symptoms associated with CSS. The present study …

The Role Of Religion In Managing Existential Threat: Effects On Outgroup Attitudes, Lauren Elizabeth Coursey

Psychology Theses

The increased worldview defense following mortality salience is a robust finding in terror management theory research. In some cases, this defense can take the form of ingroup favoritism, outgroup bias, and prejudice. I predicted that religious affiliation would attenuate the effects of mortality salience on expressions of prejudice. Specifically, I predicted an interaction between religious affiliation and mortality salience to emerge, such that whereas the religiously non-affiliated will exhibit an increase in prejudice scores following mortality salience, the religiously affiliated will not. I further hypothesized that among religiously affiliated participants, the interaction between MS and affiliation will predict outgroup attitudes …

Acute Elevation In Estradiol Influences The Salience Of Cocaine Cues, Samara Morris Bobzean

Psychology Theses

Previous research demonstrates that women and female rodents are more responsive to environmental stimuli associated with drug reward than males. A growing body of literature supports a role for estradiol as one of the mechanisms underlying sex differences in the behavioral response to drugs of abuse. However, little is known about the influence of acute elevations in levels of estradiol on cocaine conditioned behaviors. Thus, the purpose of the present study was to investigate the influence of an acute increase in systemic estradiol levels on the expression of cocaine-induced conditioned place preference (CPP). Experimentally naïve, adult female Long Evans rats …

A Novel Method Utilizing Approach-Avoidance To Assess The Aversive Nature Of Pain, Amber Lee Ann Harris Bozer

Psychology Theses

Pain is a multidimensional experience that involves sensory, emotional/affective, and evaluative components, yet preclinical pain research has mainly focused on testing the sensory dimension. Those suffering from pain may be confronted with complex emotional conflicts on a daily basis in which they are presented with the dilemma of choosing to satiate other motivational drives or attend to their pain. Preclinical assessments focusing on sensory mechanisms and measurements may be lacking in predictive validity for treating pain populations. Some paradigms to test the affective nature of pain in laboratory rodents have been validated, yet they focus on escape from pain. Organisms …

Impact Of Recurrence On Prostate Cancer Survivors, Gabriela Orsak

Psychology Theses

The present study examined the impact of recurrence on health-related and prostate-specific quality of life, post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms, physiological arousal to stress, and psychological distress by comparing disease-free survivors (N = 46) to survivors who experienced recurrence (N = 18), and healthy controls (N = 18). Participants completed paper and pencil questionnaires and submitted blood samples. Groups did not report differences in health-related quality of life, sexual and urinary function, problems with urinary function, perceived stress, psychological distress, epinephrine levels and post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms. Survivors who experienced recurrence reported less bowel function than disease-free survivors. However, survivors who …

Effective Truancy Reduction Programs: How Is Success Defined?, Veronica Cole

Public Affairs Dissertations

This research examines how stakeholders involved with the Dallas County Truancy Court measure and define the success of truancy reduction programs. Previous studies have failed to include the perceptions of all of these major stakeholders. Judges, non-profit organizations, parents, and principals from the six districts serviced within the Dallas County Truancy Court were interviewed to assess how success was measured within truancy reduction programs. Findings indicated the measure of success among stakeholders was not consistent. This study identified the barriers associated with developing a uniform definition of success among multiple stakeholders in a decentralized arrangement.

A Study Of Anthropomorphic Figurines In The Neolithic Of Southwest Asia And Southeastern Europe, Carl T. Feagans

Sociology & Anthropology Theses

Anthropomorphic figurines resemble people, very often the people who created them. Thus, these figurines stand to provide insight into their cultures perhaps from the perspective of the original members of the culture. Researchers in figurine studies often speculate on the purposes of figurines and attempt to interpret their meanings. This study attempts to examine anthropomorphic figurines of the Neolithic in Southwest Asia and Southeastern Europe through cataloged and compared physical characteristics of the figurines themselves gathered from published data into a relational database. Figurine data are then imported into statistical software for analysis. The data produced in this study support …

The News We Use: A Mixed Methods Analysis Of Cable News Media Polarization, Stephen Lott

Sociology & Anthropology Theses

The 2012 election is done and the dust has settled, but one cannot overlook the fact that the ever-widening gap between our two main political parties' ideologies and platforms has made it substantially harder for independents and moderates to find their place in the field of politics. The cable news media are complicit in this polarization process by reducing coherent and productive discourse on the issues to ignorant shouting matches between "conservative" republicans and "liberal" democrats, leaving no room for informed discussion or compromise. The 2012 election coverage is a near perfect example of this process, as it was a …

Repeated Decision-Making With High And Low Affect For Monetary And Social Resources, Patrick A. Ramirez

Psychology Dissertations

This research was a continuation of studies that considered the role of affect for repeated decision-making under two different conditions while maintaining similar magnitudes of gains and losses. For the two situations the resources at risk (life versus money) are deemed to be high or low in affect. These designations are relevant because past findings have shown systematic deviation in choices on single-shot or one time gambles for resources based on levels of affect associated with the potential prize. This research considers possible ceiling effects in self reports about pleasure and displeasure and considers behavior assessments of negative affect as …

The Association Between Executive Functioning And Self-Regulation Strategies In Relation To The Protective Health Behaviors Of Physical Activity And Healthy Eating, Tamer Farouk Desouky

Psychology Dissertations

Protective health behavior influences health outcomes. Physical activity (PA) and healthy eating (HE) are two important protective health behaviors that ward off many chronic diseases later in life. Nevertheless, these behaviors are seldom practiced. Executive functioning (EF) has been used as another predictor of health behavior. However, there is an inconsistency in using EF, especially with similar measures that assess self-regulation (SR). In this paper, it will be argued that EF and SR share many similarities with subtle differences. The primary question of this study was to consequently answer whether EF has predictive validity to physical activity and healthy eating. …

Editor's Note: Introducing A Newly Rebranded Journal, Damon P. S. Andrew

Journal of Applied Sport Management

No abstract provided.

Front Matter

Journal of Applied Sport Management

Front Matter for Volume 5 Issue 3.

Back Matter

Journal of Applied Sport Management

Back Matter for Volume 5, Issue 3.

Back Matter

Journal of Applied Sport Management

Back Matter for Volume 5, Issue 4.

Is There A Best Cow Size For Beef Cattle Producers?, Matthew Stockton, Sunil P. Dhoubhadel, Leslie Aaron Stalker

Cornhusker Economics

There are individuals in the beef cattle industry who claim there is a need for smaller brood cows, because smaller cows are more efficient and therefore more profitable. On the other hand, there are those who claim the larger the cow the better, and these generally are those who feed calves to slaughter. The proponents of both sides seem to have logical reasons that support their claims. So who is right?

Be A Part Of The Plan - Engaging People - Linking The World, Charlotte Narjes

Cornhusker Economics

The Nebraska Broadband Planning Initiative, in its fourth year, is designed to increase adoption and utilization of broadband in communities and regions. Goals of this initiative include:

Increase adoption and utilization of Broadband in communities and regions with an emphasis on unserved and underserved regions.

Work as a region in developing regional Broadband plans that increase adoption and utilization of broadband.

Increase understanding of importance of Broadband as a foundation of economic growth.

The Initiative is focused around the following project areas:

Mapping

Planning (capacity building, technical assistance and regional planning).

Regional Broadband Plan Priorities Presented To The Nebraska Public Service Commissioners, Charlotte Narjes, Roger Terry, Connie Hancock, Rebecca J. Vogt, Jan Jackson Cejka

Cornhusker Economics

Nebraska Broadband Initiative regional plan priorities were presented to the Nebraska Public Service Commissioners in July. These priorities were created by extension led planning teams located across the state. The Departments of Agricultural Economics and Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication (ALEC), along with Extension are collaboratively working on the broadband initiative.

Conservation Compliance Under The House And Senate Versions Of The 2013 Farm Bill: A Role For Empathy Nudging?, Hans J. Czap, Natalia Czap, Gary D. Lynne, Mark E. Burbach

Cornhusker Economics

Current and past farming practices have led to significant environmental degradation in the form of soil erosion (sediments), as well as fertilizer and chemical related water pollution. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has long tried to implement policies to temper such negative effects on the environment. The 2008 Farm Bill which currently guides agricultural and related environmental/conservation policy is being revised on this front. The United States Senate and the House of Representatives are each currently proposing a version of the 2013 Farm Bill to change the existing system, making it more efficient in achieving environmental (and other …

Affordable Care Act And Your Ag Business, Marilyn Schlake, Carroll S. Welte, Charlotte Narjes, Jim Crandall

Cornhusker Economics

Implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is steadily moving forward. Whether you agree or disagree with the ACA, the fact is that it is currently the national law. Already we are seeing changes affecting how hospitals, doctors and insurance carriers operate. Regulations impacting individuals and businesses in the areas of benefits covered, maximum out-of-pocket costs, taxes and penalties began on October 1st. Spend time now to evaluate how these changes will affect you, your family and your business operations.

An In Depth Analyses Of Specific Language Impairment As Compared To Other Developmental Disorders, Adam W. Stein Mr.

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Specific language impairment (SLI), defined as a disproportionate difficulty in learning language despite having normal hearing, intelligence, and no known neurological or emotional impairment, has been shown to share similar cognitive characteristics with individuals with attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD). However, little research has investigated the dissimilarities in these two different developmental disorders. Children with SLI also show many similar symptoms with individuals diagnosed with dyslexia. The aim of these studies is to get a better understanding of cognitive differences between SLI and ADHD, and the cognitive similarities between SLI and dyslexia. Tests of both verbal and non-verbal measures of …

Metaphor And Analogy: The Sun And Moon Of Legal Persuasion, Linda L. Berger

Scholarly Works

Drawing on recent studies of social cognition, decision making, and analogical processing, this article recommends that lawyers turn to novel characterizations and metaphors to solve a particular kind of persuasion problem that is created by the way judges and juries think and decide. According to social cognition researchers, we perceive and interpret new information by following a process of schematic cognition, analogizing the new data we encounter to the knowledge structures embedded in our memories. Decision-making researchers differentiate between intuitive and reflective processes (System 1 and System 2), and they agree that in System 1 decision making, only the most …

Spirituality, Faith, And Mild Alzheimer's Disease, Jocelyn Shealy Mcgee, Dennis R. Myers, Holly Carlson, Angela E. Pool-Funai, Paul A. Barclay

Sociology Faculty Publications

There is some evidence for a positive association between spirituality, cognitive, and behavioral functioning in people with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). However, to our knowledge there is no published data to date that provides an explanatory model for these findings. Twenty-eight individuals with mild AD received in-depth interviews and measures of cognitive, behavioral, emotional, and spiritual functioning to gain insight into this question in this mixed methods study. Findings revealed that people with mild AD can actively engage in meaningful discussion about how spirituality influences their experience of living with AD; that they remain deeply devoted to a relationship with the …

Evaluating The Grammars Of Children Who Speak Nonmainstream Dialects Of English, Janna B. Oetting, Ryan Lee, Karmen Porter Ph.D.

Communication Sciences & Disorders Faculty Publications

In this article, we review three clinical responses to the study and evaluation of grammar in children who speak nonmainstream dialects of English. Then we introduce a fourth, system based response that views nonmainstream dialects of English, such as African American English (AAE) and Southern White English (SWE) as made up of dialect-specific and dialect-universal features. To illustrate the usefulness of a system-based approach and to distinguish our two terms from others in the dialect literature, we present AAE and SWE relative clause data from two previously published studies. Following this, we present new findings from AAE- and SWE-speaking children’s …

“Follow Your Heart” – Chinese Urban Post-80 Mothers’ Expectations For Their Children, Wenjie(Rena) Chen

Senior Projects Spring 2013

It has been 35 years since the Chinese government first introduced the One-Child Policy in 1978 to control the rapidly growing population. The first generation born after the policy was instated are mainly only children and are usually referred to as the "post-80" generation. As they are stepping into their thirties and becoming parents, the current project explores their expectations for their children, with a focus on urban post-80 mothers' expectations for their children's freedom of choice and how these expectations are different from those of the previous generations. A telephone survey was conducted with 82 urban mothers from four …

Motivation In Athletes With And Without Autism Spectrum Disorder: Sq, Eq And Aq Relationships To Preferred Feedback, Julia C. Harreschou

Scripps Senior Theses

All athletes are driven by motivation, sources or reasons to push their bodies to their limits and continue to do so regularly. There have been several studies concerning motivation in typical athletes, and many regarding social motivation in people with High Functioning Autism (HFA), however most have been limited to children, and there have been no investigations into HFA athletes’ motivation. The current study looks into the role of social dimensions in athletics, and tests how one’s gender and placement on the Empathy Questionnaire (EQ), Systemizing Questionnaire (SQ), and on the Autism Questionnaire (AQ) affect intrinsic motivation in athletics. It …

The Association Of Psychosocial Factors On Hiv/Aids Disease Progression, Melissa Margolis

Scripps Senior Theses

Despite a rise in the number of studies looking at the relationship of psychosocial factors (coping style, personality type, and social support) on HIV/AIDS severity, there remains a lack of conclusive answers about the specific association between these factors. This study used a meta-analytic method of analysis to address these issues in the post anti-retroviral treatment modality world. A systematic search of major psychology and medical computerized databases led to 110 studies used in the meta-analysis. Social support was found to have the strongest relationship with HIV progression. Structural social support had greater protective effect on HIV progression than functional …

Ethnicity, Assimilation And Transnationalism: A Comparative Study Of Eastern European Migration To The United States (1940-2012), Cezara Olga Crisan

Dissertations

Cezara Olga Crisan

Loyola University Chicago

ETHNICITY, ASSIMILATION AND TRANSNATIONALISM:

A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF EASTERN EUROPEAN MIGRATION

TO THE UNITED STATES (1940-2012)

Transnationalism is a relatively new pattern of migration; the process by which transnationalism has supplanted assimilation has been the subject of this study, and it has been done by comparing the immigration experience of Eastern Europeans, before and after the demise of the communist regimes in Eastern Europe.

The study employed a qualitative methodology with a total of sixty one respondents divided in two groups from Eastern Europe - a "pre-communist wave" and a "post-communist wave" - who …

Remembering The Cultural Trauma Legacies Of Slavery: African American Young Adult Perceptions On Racism, Ethnic Identity, And Racial Socialization, Kimya Pearl Barden

Dissertations

The purpose of this research investigation is to explore cultural trauma theory on African American young adult development. Cultural trauma theory asserts the adverse cross-cultural encounter, North American slavery, reproduces intergenerational psychosocial legacies for contemporary African Americans. Accordingly, cultural trauma theory is used to explore with African American young adults three "slave" legacies: ethnic identity formation, perceptions of racism, and racial socialization experiences. A qualitative case study approach is used for (N=26) participants enrolled in either college or a GED program. Each young adult participates in either an individual or focus group interview. To aid in data triangulation, older African …

Second-Class Families: The Challenges And Strategies Of Mixed-Status Immigrant Families, Diana Maritza Guelespe

Dissertations

The most recent peak in migration has involved large numbers of undocumented people and much of the sociological scholarship on immigration explores their lives as individuals and how they stay connected to their family across borders, but there is little research about the new phenomenon of mixed-status immigrant families-- families with at least one unauthorized immigrant and one U.S. citizen--or how their families face the looming risk of separation. The purpose of this dissertation is to describe the experiences and challenges these families confront. Why has there been a rise in mixed-status immigrant families? How does the relative permanence of …

The Effects Of Organized Activity Involvement On Latino Adolescent Well-Being, Maria D. Guzman

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relation between organized activity (OA) involvement, as measured by 10th/12th grade intensity and consistency of involvement, and 12th grade Latino adolescent well-being, as measured by self-perceptions (i.e. locus of control & self-worth) and academic perceptions (i.e. educational expectations & school belonging). Further, the moderating effects of primary home language, sex, and family SES, on the relation between OA involvement and 12th grade well-being were assessed. Finally, we examined a model of predictors of participation in which 10th/12th grade individual factors (i.e. academic and self- perceptions) predicted OA involvement in 12th grade, …