Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Partisan Stereotype Exaggeration: The Role Of Like-Minded Media Consumption And Inter-Party Hostility, Kamran Hughes

WWU Graduate School Collection

The current study examines how like-minded media consumption and inter-party hostility contribute to the formation of political stereotypes. More specifically, I investigated stereotypes about Democrats’ and Republicans’ general willingness to accept inequality among social groups. Prior research indicates that political stereotypes tend to be exaggerations of actual liberal-conservative differences in personality. However, researchers know little about the factors contributing to Democrats’ and Republicans’ expression of exaggerated partisan stereotypes. I hypothesized that like-minded media consumption, inter-party hostility, and Democratic Party affiliation would be positive predictors of stereotype exaggeration. To test this hypothesis, 259 U.S. partisan adults completed the Social Dominance Orientation …

Collaborative Ocean Acidification Mapping For A Changing Salish Sea? Transdisciplinary And Transboundary Barriers, Katrina Radach

WWU Graduate School Collection

Fragmented Ocean Acidification (OA) data and collaboration efforts between disciplines and stakeholders for the Salish Sea are barriers to a more effective transboundary ecosystem understanding and governance. While there are presently efforts to research and monitor OA, there is a significant gap of coordinated efforts throughout the entire Sea, especially around OA biological indicators. To help bridge the gaps and increase collaborative resources, I conducted an exploratory case study of OA data mapping for the changing Salish Sea. For this project, I addressed the following research questions. First, what are the most informative ecological indicators to discern critical climate risk …

The Effect Of Experience-Based Prototypes On Spatial Memory, Michael L. (Michael Loran) Williams

WWU Graduate School Collection

The Category Adjustment (CA) model of spatial memory (Huttenlocher, Hedges, & Duncan, 1991) explains how bias towards the centers of spatial categories occurs when recalling locations for target objects. According to the model, this error is the product of Bayesian combination between the rapidly-deteriorating metric information of an object and its longer-lasting categorical information, a process which reduces error variance over time. This adjustment is robust, but previous testing has mainly relied upon remembering simple targets (e.g., dots) in geometric figures. Few studies have addressed whether objects’ real-world expectations are incorporated into this paradigm and, if so, how this information …

Self-Determined Exploration Of The Outdoors And What Students Can Teach Themselves: A Report On The Beach Investigators Summer Program, Mark F. (Mark Franklin) Bryant

WWU Graduate School Collection

For my masters field project, I designed and ran a five-day week long summer program called Beach Investigators that teaches about the beach, and observing and investigating out surroundings. The Program aimed to provide 5th through 9th grade students with skill and internal motivation they could use to engage in more thoughtful and in-depth exploration of their local ecosystem. This program is based in Self Determination theory (SDT), which has the potential to aid in the aims and goals of EE. I found that SDT programming has the potential both increase student ecological knowledge, as well as increase motivation for …

The Chemicals Between Us: A Geoarchaeological Analysis Of A Shell Midden And Patterns Of Deposition At The Woodstock Farm Site, Chuckanut Bay, Washington, Stacie Jo Nored Pratschner

WWU Graduate School Collection

Human settlement of the Gulf of Georgia region by hunter-forager peoples began nearly 5000 years ago, culminating in the familiar Developed Northwest Coast Pattern exhibited in many Marpole Phase archaeological sites beginning 2400 years BP throughout the Gulf of Georgia region. The physical remnants of the intensive shellfish collection and processing that took place on the Northwest Coast are in shell midden deposits: archaeological sites that contain an abundance of discarded shell, bones, lithic tools, and charcoal. The preceding Locarno Beach Phase (3500-2400 BP), particularly in the southern Gulf of Georgia region, is less well understood by archaeologists because of …

On The “Bubble” Of Burnout's Prevalence Estimates, Eric Laurent, Irvin Sam Schonfeld, Renzo Bianchi, Laura Hawryluck, Peter G. Brindley

Publications and Research

Hawryluck and Brindley (2018) addressed the issue of burnout—a syndrome thought to be induced by job stress—among critical care medicine (CCM) practitioners. Although we agree that the practice of CCM can be stressful, relying on burnout as an indicator of the practitioners’ response to occupational adversity is unwarranted. Despite its popularity, burnout remains poorly defined. Disconcertingly, investigators have widely relied on the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) for “diagnosing” burnout in spite of the fact that the MBI is not a diagnostic instrument.Experiencing fatigue or distancing oneself from one’ work—what burnout is about—is not necessarily a sign of ill-being in itself. …

The Politics Of Twilights: Notes On The Semiotics Of Horizon Photography, Michael W. Raphael

Publications and Research

Visual sociology is crucial for exploring the indexical meanings that thick description cannot capture within a cultural setting. This paper explores how such meanings are created within a subset of the domain of photography. Using data gathered over several years, I constructed the semiotic code ‘horizon’ photographers use when ‘in the field’ for photographing periods of twilight. This code explains the relevance of subject matter to the photograph’s aesthetics. Specifically, I detail how ‘the horizon’ communicates the potential for the photographer to ‘capture’ the index of a symbol that later permits the photographer to culturally mark scenes with ‘light’. In …

Queer Solidarities: New Activisms Erupting At The Intersection Of Structural Precarity And Radical Misrecognition, Michelle Fine, María Elena Torre, David M. Frost, Allison L. Cabana

Publications and Research

This article investigates the relationship between exposure to structural injustice, experiences of social discrimination, psychological well being, physical health, and engagement in activist solidarities for a large, racially diverse and inclusive sample of 5,860 LGBTQ/Gender Expansive youth in the United States. Through a participatory action research design and a national survey created by an intergenerational research collective, the “What’s Your Issue?” survey data are used to explore the relationships between injustice, discrimination and activism; to develop an analysis of how race and gender affect young people’s vulnerabilities to State violence (in housing, schools and by the police), and their trajectories …

The Benefits Of A Therapeutic Nature Education Intervention For Children With Adhd, Madeline Dineen

WWU Graduate School Collection

ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) diagnoses have been on the rise in children in the United States for the last twenty years due to multiple possible reasons (NIMH, 2016). Recent work on the subject, however, notes a positive correlation between exposure of children to experience-based nature therapy and the reduction of ADHD symptoms (Taylor & Kuo 2011). I hypothesized that implementing an intervention that is in an outdoor nature environment, that is experience-based and contains a learning objective would be correlated with a reduction of ADHD behaviors in elementary aged children. This study is a probe into the possibility of …

Creating Space For Belonging Within The West Virginia Progressive Movement, Roger A. Jennette

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

With the 2016 Presidential election come and gone, political activism within the United States has garnered more attention as political actors on the Progressive Left oppose the actions of the new administration. The West Virginia progressive movement is used as a case study of the national push towards progressive politics. Using participant diaries and a series of longitudinal interviews, this thesis explores the creation of spaces belonging within an activist organization to foster sustained involvement. The analysis points to the importance of creating a sense of belonging and the desire to ‘strive for better’ in a state that is often …

Investigating The Relationships Between Family Communication Patterns, Academic Resilience, And Students’ Classroom Communication Behaviors, Jordan Atkinson

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

This dissertation served two purposes. The first purpose was to examine the relationships between the two dimensions of family communication patterns (i.e., conversation orientation and conformity orientation) and four student classroom communication behaviors (i.e., out-of-class communication, in-class oral participation, instructional dissent, and students’ motives to communicate with their instructors). The second purpose of this dissertation was to investigate academic resilience as a mediator in the relationship between family communication patterns and student classroom communication behaviors. It was discovered that students’ family conversation orientation was associated positively with their oral participation and the relational, functional, participatory, and excuse-making motives to communicate …

Understanding Transgender Prejudice Through The Lens Of Emotion, Holly N. Fitzgerald

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Transgender individuals report facing incidents of discrimination often in all aspects of their lives (James et al., 2016). A potential way to combat the discrimination transgender people face is through reducing transgender prejudice. However, it is not yet known what comprises transgender prejudice. Some research has found that emotions may be the more predominant determinant of prejudice, as opposed to stereotypes (Dasgupta, Desteno, Williams, & Hunsinger, 2009; Haddock, Zanna, & Esses, 1993a; Smith, 1993). Thus, the present research sought to identify the specific emotions associated with transgender prejudice. In Study 1, participants completed explicit and implicit measures of prejudice and …

Delay Discounting And Cannabinoid Enzyme Inhibitors, Devin Andrew Galdieri

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Delay discounting is a measure of impulsive choice that is correlated with maladaptive behavior and psychological disorders. Disruptions to serotonin and dopamine pathways can cause changes in delay discounting, as can lesions to the prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens. The endocannabinoid system modulates other neurotransmitter systems, including dopamine and serotonin pathways. Cannabinoid receptors type 1 are found in relatively high concentrations in the nucleus accumbens and the prefrontal cortex. These receptors are activated by endogenous cannabinoids, which are synthesized on demand and broken down by catabolic enzymes. The action of these enzymes can be inhibited by a class of drugs …

Three Essays On Tourism Demand And Economic Development In The United States, David Naab Aratuo

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

The global tourism industry has experienced sustained growth over the years even in the face of economic shocks. International travel for tourism purposes continues to grow albeit at different rates in developed and developing countries. The trend is suggestive of the significant impact of tourism on the global economy and social phenomena since the last century. A similar trend is observed in the United States as tourism contributes to the economy by generating revenues and creating jobs. The United States is a significant player in global tourism, being the largest exporter and the second largest importer of tourism. It is …

Understanding The Novice Decision-Making Process In Forensic Footwear Examinations: Accuracy And Decision Rules, Madonna A. Nobel

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

The reproducibility of experienced-based forensic pattern interpretation is founded on the notion that domain-specific knowledge can be successfully distributed and applied among experts within a group. This assumption persists, even when the examination is complicated by variations in case circumstances, such as impression clarity and totality, as well as media, substrate, collection mechanism and enhancement. While it is further theorized that many of these factors (as well as additional confounding factors) are at play during an examination, the manner and extent to which these sources of variability affect the examination of footwear evidence remain unclear. In order to explore this …

Midterm 2018 And Targeting Latino Community Through Misinformation And Disinformation Online, Manjul Shrestha

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

How has the Latino community been targeted by digital propaganda during the 2018 midterm elections in the US? How might this affect their involvement in and around the election? This thesis starts to answer these questions through a data analysis on two of the most prominent and popular social media platforms for political discussion: Twitter and Reddit. This study analyzed people’s posting patterns over time, the digital traces of the individuals pushing the majority and most popular content, and Latino candidates’ interaction on Twitter. This research provides evidence that on Twitter there are two main actors discussing Latinos and politics: …

Regulatory And Financial Influence Of Federal Government Activities On Local Economies: A Three Essay Approach, Brianne Renee Firth

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

This dissertation examines the effects of federal government activities on local economies. Three research questions are addressed: How do federal environmental regulations influence local economic growth?, What regional factors influence the spatial distribution of federal conservation programs?, and How does location-based federal funding effect economic resilience within the targeted region? Regional economic analysis, spatial analysis, and spatial econometric techniques are implemented to answer these questions.

The first essay examines the effects of the air pollution standards on county level economic growth. The results illustrate, in the long run, the impacted regions have adapted to the changes in the pollution standards. …

A Comparison Of Child Abuse Potential Inventory And Parenting Stress Index With Families In The Parent-Child Interaction Therapy And Treatment As Usual Groups, Keri B. Whitacre

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

This study compared Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) in a group format to a Treatment as Usual (TAU) group format within a community setting. PCIT is typically conducted individually with caregiver and child in a clinical setting. Results showed decreases on the Parenting Stress Index (PSI-SF), for both treatment groups over time with the PCIT group reporting less parental stress than the TAU group. However, there was no difference between groups over time on the Child Abuse Potential Inventory (CAPI). This study provides preliminary evidence for the efficacy of delivering PCIT in a community setting. The implication for child welfare clinicians …

Climate Science Literacy: A Study Of Climate Programs' Usability, Amber Rochelle Williams

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Literacy is an important facet of understanding how undergraduate college students comprehend climate science. This research, conducted at West Virginia University, examines the usability of climate data in three commonly used climate programs to reduce the prominent knowledge gap in climate science literacy about college students.

The objective of this research is to investigate the knowledge gap in climate science literacy by conducting focus group surveys to examine the usability of programs that use climate datasets. The three programs used in this research were the NOAA online tool, NASA’s Panoply data viewer, and GrADS programmable tool. The NOAA tool is …

Effects Of Reinforcement Rate On The Aversive Function Of Timeout From Positive Reinforcement, Cory Whirtley

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Although the use of timeout from positive reinforcement is widespread and has been shown to be an effective punisher in clinical settings, the factors responsible for its effectiveness are not fully understood. The present experiment was designed to evaluate one of these factors, the reinforcement rate underway during periods of time-in. Rats’ lever pressing was maintained on variable-interval schedules of food reinforcement in a multiple schedule with two components. In one component, no timeouts were delivered. In the other component, when a variable-ratio schedule was met, lever presses were followed by a 30-s timeout during which a tone sounded, the …

Unequal Influence: The Impact Of Inequality On Trade Policy, Brian William Fitzpatrick

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Trade was a central issue in the 2016 US presidential election, with both major party candidates debating how trade impacts American workers. However, the current literature on trade policy outcomes and inequality has insufficient measures of public opinion on trade. I examine the varying roles the public and interest groups play in the trade policy formation process as inequality changes in democratic societies. I expect, as inequality increases, the public and mass based interest groups will have less resources to expend on influencing policymakers. Also, as inequality increases economic elites’ and business interest groups’ resources will increase, and they will …

Psychometric Properties Of The Wake Forest Physician Trust Scale With Young And Older Adults, Emma Katz

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Trust is an essential component of any interpersonal relationship, but it is particularly integral to the patient-physician relationship. Patient-physician trust increases willingness to seek treatment, disclose sensitive information, adhere to medical recommendations, and share decision-making authority. While there have been developments in current research on the psychosocial variables associated with patient-physician trust, there continues to be the need for a psychometrically sound measure of trust, as well as a further need for psychometric evaluation of already developed measures. The purpose of the study was to reexamine a measure of patient-physician trust, the Wake Forest Physician Trust Scale (WFPTS), using more …

Le Rôle Du Programme Des Travailleurs Agricoles Saisonniers (Ptas) Dans La Vulnérabilisation Des Travailleurs Migrants Au Canada, Cindy Gagnon, Alexandre Couture Gagnon

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Every year, over 25,000 people from Mexico and the Caribbean migrate to Canada through the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP) to work on a Canadian farm. To what extent does the SAWP, as an institution, impact the vulnerability of migrant agricultural workers? The insights and explanations provided by neo-institutional theory's three streams help to better account for the complexity of the economic and socio-historical SAWP-generated factors that affect the situation of migrant workers. It is shown that this program has created and continues to perpetuate a context in which it is difficult for migrant workers to have control over their …

Comparing Rates Of Women Leaders In Western Europe, Elizabeth Stark

Honors Projects

This article analyzes the rates of women leaders in conservative, green and right-wing parties in Western Europe. The genders of parliamentary leaders, founders and party leaders of these parties are examined to determine if women are over represented or under represented as political leaders in Western Europe.

Does Savoring Mediate The Relationships Between Explanatory Style And Mood Outcomes?, Paul E. Jose, Bee T. Lim, Soyeon Kim, Fred B. Bryant

Psychology: Faculty Publications and Other Works

Research has shown that explanatory style predicts negative mood outcomes as well as positive mood outcomes, but the mechanisms by which this occurs are unclear. We investigated here whether the manner in which people savor life events might help explain these relationships. Specifically, we examined whether amplifying and dampening savoring mediated the associations between pessimistic and optimistic explanatory styles on the one hand, and positive and negative mood outcomes on the other. A sample of 103 university students completed self-report measures of explanatory style (ASQ), savoring (WOSC), and a variety of mood outcomes (i.e., happiness, life satisfaction, depression, and anxiety). …

Reliability And Validity Of The Japanese Version Of The Ways Of Savoring Checklist (Woscj), Erika Miyakawa, Paul E. Jose, Fred B. Bryant, Atsushi Kawakubo, Takashi Oguchi

Psychology: Faculty Publications and Other Works

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the reliability and validity of the Japanese version of the Ways of Savoring Checklist (WOSC-J), adapted from the original English version of the Ways of Savoring Checklist (Bryant & Veroff, 2007). We translated and back-translated the WOSC-J, and administered it to 520 Japanese adults using an online survey. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used to examine the factor structure of the measure. Confirming our hypothesis, a two-factor model (amplifying and dampening) yielded the best goodness-of-fit to the data. Each of the two factors had adequate internal consistency reliability. To assess the …

Resilience And Disability: Consideration And Integration Of Resilience Training In Undergraduate Rehabilitation Service Programs, Susan Stuntzner, Jacquelyn A. Dalton, Veronica Umeasiegbu, Angela Macdonald, Fidencio Mercado

Counseling Faculty Publications and Presentations

Resilience is a topic of growing interest with significant momentum generated by the Positive Psychology Movement. While resilience has been discussed at the graduate level and beyond, few articles seem to openly discuss how it is addressed as a part of undergraduate rehabilitation service programs. Discussion and careful consideration is needed as many undergraduates work in direct services. This article is designed to help rehabilitation educators and professionals understand the application and value of resilience and resilience-based skills as a part of the undergraduate rehabilitation curriculum. Article content addresses resilience, benefits of resilience, resilience-based factors, and the applicability of resilience …

The Use Of Item Response Theory In Survey Methodology: Application In Seat Belt Data, Mark K. Ledbetter, Norou Diawara, Bryan E. Porter

Mathematics & Statistics Faculty Publications

Problem: Several approaches to analyze survey data have been proposed in the literature. One method that is not popular in survey research methodology is the use of item response theory (IRT). Since accurate methods to make prediction behaviors are based upon observed data, the design model must overcome computation challenges, but also consideration towards calibration and proficiency estimation. The IRT model deems to be offered those latter options. We review that model and apply it to an observational survey data. We then compare the findings with the more popular weighted logistic regression. Method: Apply IRT model to the observed data …

The Researchers' Perspective: For And By The Community: Processes And Practices From The Development Of National School Library Standards, Elizabeth A. Burns, Marcia A. Mardis

STEMPS Faculty Publications

In this study, we describe the innovative and rigorous phased process used to compose the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) National School Library Standards (AASL, 2018). We begin by recounting previous standards iterations and compared their development processes to the most recent process used during the development of the AASL Standards. After we detail the development timeline and process phases, we conclude with implications for best practices in standards development for school librarians, professional leaders, and practitioners.

Advocating For Change In School Library Perceptions, Elizabeth A. Burns

STEMPS Faculty Publications

The article focuses on a research which aims to examine the practices of school librarians to know their impact on stakeholder perceptions. It mentions that the research was guided by the question on the advocacy strategies that were effective in changing the perception of the school library program among stakeholders. A chart is presented depicting characteristics of participants.