Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

A Mixed Methods Analysis Of The Family Support Experiences Of Lgbtq Latter-Day Saints, Mckay Stevens Mattingly

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

A burgeoning vein of research assesses links between familial support and psychosocial health among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer or questioning (LGBTQ) individuals. This study is a cross-sectional, multi-method survey that examined these associations in highly religious families. Participants were 587 individuals who identified as LGBTQ, were affiliated with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS), and were between the ages of 18 and 30. Reports of early support from families were significantly associated with various measures of psychosocial health, more consistently for men than women. In addition, participants provided written narratives in response to an …

A Vegetation Analysis On Horn Island, Mississippi, Ca. 1940 Using Characteristic Dimensions Derived From Historical Aerial Photography, Guy Wilburn Jeter Jr.

Master's Theses

Horn Island is part of the MS/AL barrier island chain in the northern Gulf of Mexico located approximately 18kn off the coast of Mississippi. This island’s habitats have undergone many transitions over the last several decades. The goal of this study was to quantify habitat change over a seventy year period using historical black and white photography from 1940. Using present NAIP imagery from the USDA, habitat structure was estimated by using geo-statistics, and second order statistics, from a co-occurrence matrix, to characterize texture for habitat classification. Percent land cover was then calculated to determine overall land cover change over …

Empirical Studies On Interest Rate Derivatives, Xudong Sun

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Interest rate models are the building blocks of financial market and the interest rate derivatives market is the largest derivatives market in the world. In this dissertation, we shall focus on numerical pricing of interest rate derivatives, estimating model parameters by Kalman filter, and studying various models empirically. We shall propose a front-fixing finite element method to price the American put option under the quadratic term structure framework and compare it with a trinomial tree method and common finite element method. Numerical test results show the superiority of our front-fixing finite element method in the aspects of computing the option …

Understanding And Applying Design Thinking, Courtney Zwart

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

The intent of this project was to gain an in-depth understanding of design thinking, both by internalizing its principles and fundamentals and applying them to an actual design challenge. I began with an extensive review of the literature and also interviewed an experienced design thinking practitioner. I then completed an 8-week online course in design thinking offered by the University of Virginia, which provided instruction in a 15-step approach to design thinking as well as key tools to use in the approach. Finally, I applied this approach to a design challenge owned by a leading consultancy in New York City. …

Impact Of An Interprofessional Communication Course On Nursing, Medical, And Pharmacy Students’ Communication Skill Self-Efficacy Beliefs, Nicholas E. Hagemeier, Rick Hess, Kyle S. Hagen, Emily L. Sorah

ETSU Faculty Works

Objective. To describe an interprofessional communication course in an academic health sciences center and to evaluate and compare interpersonal and interprofessional communication self-efficacy beliefs of medical, nursing, and pharmacy students before and after course participation, using Bandura’s self-efficacy theory as a guiding framework.

Design. First-year nursing (n=36), first-year medical (n=73), and second-year pharmacy students (n=83) enrolled in an interprofessional communication skills development course voluntarily completed a 33-item survey instrument based on Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC) core competencies prior to and upon completion of the course during the fall semester of 2012.

Assessment. Nursing students entered the course with higher interpersonal …

Beyond Classroom Evaluation: Structuring Research For Dissemination, Andrea Falcone, Stephanie Wiegand

LOEX Conference Proceedings 2012

Librarians often pursue worthwhile classroom evaluations, yet the results of those evaluations do not always reach beyond the water cooler or an administrator’s office door. Whether successful or not, our findings can lead to rapid improvement in instructional methods, but only if we share our knowledge. If the thought of disseminating your research is overwhelming, you are not alone. This interactive session will provide you with techniques for parsing the research process to enable dissemination, especially through formal channels. Participants will draft an action plan for an instruction-related research project, including specific tasks, time horizon, and resource allocation. This session …

Amending Equal Time: Explaining Institutional Change In American Communication Policy, Tim P. Vos, Seth Ashley

Communication Faculty Publications and Presentations

This study explains the history of a 1959 amendment to the 1934 Communications Act through the lens of historical institutionalism. The amendment created broad exemptions for newscasts, documentaries, interviews, and news events, triggering the equal time provision for candidates for public office. While this study offers a variety of new empirical details, the chief goal is explanation based on an examination of historical mechanisms—path dependence, critical junctures, agglomeration, asymmetries of power, reinforcement of expectations, and temporal sequencing—that shaped the policy options leading up to the amendment.

The Value Of Balanced Growth For Transportation: Executive Summary, Kirby Date, Jacqueline Jenkins, Wendy A. Kellogg, Suzann Rhodes, Kathryn W. Hexter, Charlie Post

All Maxine Goodman Levin School of Urban Affairs Publications

This project evaluates the benefit that programs like the Ohio Balanced Growth Program could bring to transportation agencies in Ohio.

Sources Of Productivity Spillovers: Panel Data Evidence From China, Badi H. Baltagi, Peter H. Egger, Michaela Kesina

Center for Policy Research

This paper assesses sources of productivity spillovers in China's electric and electronic manufacturing industry using a rich panel data-set of 25,360 firms observed over the period 2004-2007. This industry is characterized by its important reliance on technology. In particular, the paper focuses on the role of other firms' productivity as well as productivity shifters in affecting own firm-level total factor productivity. In addition, this paper examines the possible difference between spillovers from foreign-owned units and from units which participate at global markets through exporting in comparison to domestically-owned and non-exporting units. We find evidence of stronger spillovers from exporting firms …

Testing Equality Of Covariance Matrices Via Pythagorean Means, Jin Seo Cho, Peter C.B. Phillips

Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers

We provide a new test for equality of covariance matrices that leads to a convenient mechanism for testing specification using the information matrix equality. The test relies on a new characterization of equality between two k dimensional positive-definite matrices A and B : the traces of AB –1 and BA –1 are equal to k if and only if A = B . Using this criterion, we introduce a class of omnibus test statistics for equality of covariance matrices and examine their null, local, and global approximations under some mild regularity conditions. Monte Carlo experiments are conducted to explore the …

A Note On Minimax Testing And Confidence Intervals In Moment Inequality Models, Timothy B. Armstrong

Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers

This note uses a simple example to show how moment inequality models used in the empirical economics literature lead to general minimax relative efficiency comparisons. The main point is that such models involve inference on a low dimensional parameter, which leads naturally to a definition of “distance” that, in full generality, would be arbitrary in minimax testing problems. This definition of distance is justified by the fact that it leads to a duality between minimaxity of confidence intervals and tests, which does not hold for other definitions of distance. Thus, the use of moment inequalities for inference in a low …

Multiple Osteochondromas In A 16th–19th Century Individual From Setúbal (Portugal), Nathalie Antunes-Ferreira, Eugénia Cunha, Carina Marques

Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

An archaeological survey at the church of Nossa Senhora da Anunciada (Setúbal, Portugal) uncovered the remains of 92 individuals. Historical and archaeological data suggest that the inhumations occurred between 1531 and 1839. The present work reports the pathological features of a mature male individual exhibiting multiple osseous bony projections and bone deformity, mainly affecting the metaphyseal and adjacent diaphyseal regions of the long bones. The macroscopic and the radiological analyses of the lesions suggest multiple osteochondromas as the most probable diagnosis. This is the first archaeological case of this disease known on the Portuguese territory and in southern Europe.

Canaries In The Goal Mines: A Timely Analysis Of College Athletics And The Role Of Student-Athlete, C. Harrison, Scott Bukstein

EGS Content

In July 2012, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) imposed severe sanctions on The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) athletics program related to allegations of sexual abuse occurring in Penn State athletics facilities. Sanctions included a $60 million !ne, a four-year postseason ban for the Penn State football team, a signi!cant reduction in athletics scholarships, and a five year probationary period (Consent Decree, 2012). These punitive actions were designed in part to “change the culture that allowed this activity to occur and realign it in a sustainable fashion with the expected norms and values of intercollegiate athletics” (Consent Decree, 2012, …

Facilitating Holistic Spiritual Formation At The Northside Church Of Christ In Laredo, Texas, Kirk R. Cowell

Doctor of Ministry Theses

This thesis describes a project to facilitate holistic spiritual formation at the Northside Church of Christ in Laredo, Texas. A program consisting of seven weekly sessions of intergenerational religious experiences was enacted at the church in hopes of catalyzing growth in the cognitive, relational, affective, and behavioral domains. These sessions were constructed on a foundation consisting of the experiences of the non-class Churches of Christ—a group of congregations that has historically rejected the Bible class model—and informed by the intergenerational formation literature. Evaluation of this project showed relational and affective growth greater than what the congregation had experienced with the …

Mind & Matter: The Discursive Construction Of The Iphone In Apple's Advertising, Nicholas Stratton

Theses and Dissertations

The widespread adoption of smartphone technology in the contemporary United States requires critical reflection on its role within society. This thesis compares the way Apple's television advertising discourse, from 2007 to 2011, frames the iPhone to consumers with the way Apple's iAd promotional material frames the iPhone to advertisers, and considers what the disparity between these two frameworks says about the still-evolving role of smartphone technology in society. It argues that the disparity between these two frameworks is indicative of a fundamental tension within smartphone technology. This tension is reflected in Apple's ability to discursively construct the iPhone as a …

Fundraising Techniques Of San Luis Obispo Nonprofit Organizations, Samantha Suyemoto

Graphic Communication

The purpose of this study was to identify the strengths and weaknesses of using direct mail and electronic media in the fundraising techniques of local San Luis Obispo nonprofit organizations. The intended audience includes the nonprofits interviewed in each case study as well as the other organizations that fundraise within the San Luis Obispo area. Three case studies of nonprofit organizations within the area were conducted in conjunction with research on various types of funding. Results of this study are intended to benefit the nonprofits by providing more information on successful fundraising habits.

Japanese Poetry And Nature In Borson's Short Journey Upriver Toward Ōishida, Shoshannah Ganz

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

In her article "Japanese Poetry and Nature in Borson's Short Journey Upriver Toward Ōishida" Shoshannah Ganz shows how the limited focus of research on Roo Borson oversimplifies the poetry and ignores the tradition that Borson is aligning her work with both in form and content: classical Chinese and Japanese poetry and their perspectives on nature. Further, Ganz explores the ways in which Borson's poetry overcomes intuitively the binaries of East/West, human/non-human, and the further binaries within the human/non-human created through representational language. Ganz contextualizes Borson's work within the master/disciple lineage of Chinese and Japanese tradition and explores how Borson …

The Practice Of Neogeography In Community-Based Organizations, Patrick Oberle

Theses - ALL

Neogeography and Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI) are two terms that have emerged recently to describe the practice of geography by those not formally trained in it as a discipline and spatial data provided by individuals through social media and other Web-based tools. Both neogeography and VGI can be directly linked to the growth of various online mapping websites and applications that allow for the creation of electronic maps that are interactive, adaptable, and easily shared via the Internet and Web. As recent phenomena, the practice of neogeography and VGI is not well understood, nor are the links these new fields …

The Economic Espionage Act Of 1996: A 15 Year Review, Matthew T. Priebe

Masters Theses

It is estimated that the United States alone loses $300 billion annually to economic espionage. The purpose of the paper is to understand the occurrence and defining characteristics of economic espionage. This is accomplished through the series of proposed research questions related to the Economic Espionage Act of 1996. These questions include: occurrence rates, offender demographics, victim demographics, and victim-offender relationship. Archival data analysis of all 18 USC §1832 prosecutions from 1996-2011, will answer each proposed research question. The results will provide worldwide corporations with statistical support to help combat economic espionage. Specifically, descriptive statistics, such as mean, median, and …

An Examination Of The Correlation Between Educational Attainment And Upward Economic Mobility Within And Without ‘High Tech Clusters’ In The Us In 2012, Hannah Cecilia Oakley

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

Utilizing Visual Attention And Inclination To Facilitate Brain-Computer Interface Design In An Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Sample, David B. Ryan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Individuals who suffer from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) have a loss of motor control and possibly the loss of speech. A brain-computer interface (BCI) provides a means for communication through nonmuscular control. Visual BCIs have shown the highest potential when compared to other modalities; nonetheless, visual attention concepts are largely ignored during the development of BCI paradigms. Additionally, individual performance differences and personal preference are not considered in paradigm development. The traditional method to discover the best paradigm for the individual user is trial and error. Visual attention research and personal preference provide the building blocks and guidelines to develop …

Hijacking The Syrian Revolution, Iman Khairat Nanoua

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

The civil war in Syria (started in March 2011) marks one of the greatest tragedies in the Middle East during the twenty-first century, and a fear that its destructive consequences may affect the entire region. The Syrian crisis coincides with the democratic wave that shaped the Arab Spring. The thesis will discuss the decision-making system and the primary actors in the Syrian crisis within the framework of three distinct phases. Each phase contributed to the hijacking of the peaceful demonstrations that sought freedom in a democratic state and of the dramatic developments on the Syrian stage. The first stage of …

The Relationship Between Research Method And Visual Display: A Study Of Conference Proceedings In The Field Of Knowledge Organization, Alon Friedman

School of Information Faculty Publications

Introduction. Research method refers to how to conduct research, how to measure progress, and what constitutes success. Visualisation has become the platform for communicating research findings according to Friedman and Smiraglia . Knowledge organization aims to organize knowledge and many researchers employ visualisation in their findings. So, what was the relationship between research methods and visual display when researchers presented their findings?

Method. All conference proceedings of the International Society of Knowledge Organizationfrom 1990 to 2010 are examined, including 256 visualisations found in the 609 articles. A random sample of 50 visualisations is then analysed to determine the …

Self-Regulated Strategy Development (Srsd) For Writing: A Tier 2 Intervention For Fifth Grade, Christina A. Flanders Psyd

All Student Scholarship

The purpose of this study was to examine whether Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) for writing could be used as a Tier 2 intervention to improve the writing of fifth grade students identified as performing below the 50th percentile on AIMSweb curriculum-based measures of correct writing sequences (WE-CBM CWS). Results of RMANOVA indicated that students in the SRSD Group made significant improvements in their WE-CBM mean score compared to the Control Group from pre- to post-test. Additional analyses using a modified WE-CBM that added one minute for students to organize their writing thoughts (EWE-CBM) did not show significant improvements to mean …

The Queer And The Bodily: Explorations Of Power In Women's Visionary Writing In The Book Of Margery Kempe 2014, Jayne Emerson Stacconi

Master's Theses

The provocative Book of Margery Kempe is a seminal text in the history of female authorship. Claiming to be the first written autobiography, The Book serves as a literary representation of womanhood during the late fourteenth to the fifteenth centuries when Margery was writing, and also speaks to circulating medieval discourses of religion, pilgrimage, and sexuality. Participating in medieval women’s visionary writing as a genre, Margery’s visionary power is a tool by which she is able to emancipate herself from the limiting roles of wife and mother. Additionally, by working within the conventions of visionary writing, Margery is able to …

L’Usage De La Rhétorique Émotionnelle Dans Les Récits De Jean Hatzfeld, Michael Rinn

Présence Francophone: Revue internationale de langue et de littérature

In France, the books of Jean Hatzfeld -- journalist and writer -- have played a key role for the public opinion to become aware of the tragedy of the genocide of the Rwandan Tutsi in 1994. Our paper aims to show how the discourse strategy of Jean Hatzfeld aims to influence the reader by using emotions. We would like to know how this rhetoric of emotions relies on specific cultural codes which are largely western centered. Our thesis is that since Auschwitz, those codes have constructed an argumentative framework for contemporary understanding of passion and pain in discourse.

Whose Success? The State–Foreign Capital Nexus And The Development Of The Automotive Industry In Slovakia, Petr Pavlinek

Geography and Geology Faculty Publications

Using the case study of Slovakia, this article considers the role of the state in the rapid growth of the automotive industry in integrated peripheral markets of the global automotive industry. Although this growth has been mainly driven by the investment strategies of automotive lead firms, the state has played an important role by accommodating the strategic needs of foreign capital through neoliberal economic policies. In addition to secondary sources, the empirical research is based on a 2010 survey of 299 Slovak-based automotive firms with a response rate of 44% and on 38 on-site firm-level interviews conducted between 2011 and …

Esquisse D’Un Projet Épistémologique Pour La Science Politique Dans Une Afrique Post-Génocide, Mame-Penda Ba

Présence Francophone: Revue internationale de langue et de littérature

This article attempts to answer two main questions: “What does it mean to teach political science in an African university when oneself is African?” and “what social realities are we documenting (or should we document)?” As a political scientist, I came to ask myself these questions based on my encounter with the genocide of the Tutsi in Rwanda, and based on the questions that this major event had kindled in me. My encounter with the subject of “genocide” was in all respects an upheaval because I understood suddenly a large weakness in the way political science was taught at Université …

La Fiction Du Génocide Ou Le Partage Des Émotions, Josias Semujanga

Présence Francophone: Revue internationale de langue et de littérature

The goal of this study is to show that the fiction of genocide aims to share emotions between the narrator and the reader. It is possible to consider the narrator as representing the real reader and not only as the simple recipient written into the text. This is to say that the narrator is a part of the story but is also the reader’s counterpart as the real recipient, because both-- narrator and real reader-- are integrated in the imaginary world of the story. The role of the author is to construct intermediate mechanisms between the reader and the author. …

The Deaf Catholic, Winter 2014

ICDA The Deaf Catholic

A newsletter published for Deaf Catholics in USA

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