Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Reward And Punishment: The Neural Correlates Of Reinforcement Feedback During Motor Learning, Christopher Mark Hill

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

‘By the carrot or the stick’ reward or punishment has been contemplated by instructors to motivate their pupils to learn a new motor skill. The reinforcements of reward and punishment have demonstrated dissociable effects on motor learning with punishment enhancing the learning rate and reward increasing retention of the motor task. However it is still unclear how the brain processes reward and punishment during motor learning. This study sought to investigate the role of reinforcement feedback in cortical neural activity associated with motor learning. A novel visuomotor rotation task was employed with reward punishment or null feedback as the participants …

On The Relationship Between Resilience, Meaning, And Hardiness: A Bi-Factor Exploratory And Confirmatory Analysis, Lauren Weathers

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Meaning in life, resilience, and hardiness have been conceptualized in a variety of ways. Some researchers theorize that these constructs share significant overlap. The goal of the current study was to examine how much overlap exists between these concepts. Three thousand and ten participants from a university in the Midwest and a university in the South completed measures of meaning in life, resilience, and hardiness. It was hypothesized that some items from these measures would create a unidimensional model while some items would create multidimensionality. Hypotheses that incorporated both models were important as there is disagreement within the literature with …

Moral Agency: A Philosophical Inquiry Into Its Scientific Foundations, Makensey Sanders

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

There is a longstanding discussion of what the criteria are to distinguish science from non-science. In section one of this paper, I will focus on four demarcating criteria of a scientific theory: (1) value neutrality; (2) verifiability; (3) falsifiability; and (4) reproducibility. Keeping these criteria in mind, I will turn to the notion of moral agency (focusing on psychopathy, autism, and personal identity) and the question of whether the current way we conceptualize and research it can be deemed as scientific according to the four criteria.

In section two, I will discuss the role psychopathy and autism play in understanding …

Emotion Regulation As A Predictor Of Pediatric Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms, Brittany Spence Sapp

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Research findings suggest that emotion regulation (ER) is a key component in the maintenance and development of psychopathology. However there is a paucity of research assessing ER and Obsessive-Compulsive (OC) symptoms particularly how ER relates to OC tendencies in children. Due to the pervasive nature of both ER difficulties and OC symptoms across major life domains (i.e. familial social academic) and the lasting impact of these problems into adulthood further research is needed to better understand this connection. The present study investigated this relation in a clinical sample of 472 youth (ages 10 – 17) who completed a packet of …

Knowledge, Assertiveness, Competence: Using A Self-Determination Theory Framework To Explain Sexual Satisfaction In College Students, Tanja Seifen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Sexual satisfaction has been shown to be related to many positive factors such as high relationship satisfaction enhanced physical and psychological health and increased overall well-being. Despite making up 27% of the sexually active population in the United States young people (ages 15-24) but are typically not taught about the benefits of sexual satisfaction or how to have a pleasurable sexual experience. Due to their high risk of Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) and unplanned pregnancies most education and research on young people’s sexuality focuses on risk behaviors and prevention. The goal of this study was to take a positive outlook …

Limited Negotiation In Embedded Ultimatum Games, Alexandros Vasios Sivvopoulos

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study expands on previous work done on signaling/screening take-it-or-leave-it asymmetric information games where excess disputes occur. Two players engage in an embedded ultimatum game in a stylized legal framework of plaintiff versus defendant. The plaintiff has either a low or a high claim on the uninformed defendant. There is a computerized version of the embedded ultimatum game to test replicability of literature results. Two novel variations are introduced. In the first variation multiple sequential offers can be made by the proposer during a single period of the embedded game and in the second real time offers and counteroffers can …

Role Of School Counselors In Deterring Juvenile Delinquency: A Mississippi Pilot Study, Wesley A. Hendrix

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Throughout the world juvenile crime remains a major part of the criminal justice system. Although crime has been on the downward trend for the past decade there is still much research that has been done is this area and is on-going. Most research that has been done in this area has solely looked at the juveniles searching for reasons as to why they commit crime. This research looked at a different aspect of juvenile crime. School counselors have a direct role in shaping a youth’s future life and have influences that others may not have. This qualitative research referenced two …

Archaeological Investigations At A Mississippian Platform Mound Site In Lowndes County, Mississippi, Hannah Danielle Zechman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Upper Tombigbee River Valley and the Black Prairie two adjacent physiographic regions located in northeast Mississippi are defined archaeologically by the existence of multiple single-mound sites with associated farmsteads or small habitation sites. This thesis is an analysis of mound-construction data and the ceramic assemblage excavated in 2017 from the Butler Mound Site (22LO500) a single-mound site located in Lowndes County Mississippi. The purpose of this thesis is to determine when construction of the Butler Mound occurred using mound-construction data ceramic analysis and radiocarbon dating. This thesis also seeks to understand how Butler and neighboring sites relate to one …

Shifting Power, Status Quo Dissatisfaction, And Power Parity: Their Effect On The Use Of Coercive Foreign Policy In International Relations, Nathan Alvin Andrew

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

How do shifts in the distribution of power effect the foreign policy decisions of states? In this dissertation, I argue that shifts in the distribution of power, status quo dissatisfaction, and power parity work together to significantly impact these decisions. Until this time, the conditional effect of these three variables has only been included in studies of major- or regional-power war, within the theoretical framework of power transition theory. To what extent do these correlates of war apply to foreign policy in general? Borrowing the insights of foreign policy substitution and the logic of the bargaining theory of war, I …

Examining The Moderating Effects Of Defendant Characteristics On The Relationship Between Crime Type And Prosecutorial Decision Making, Caitlin Marie Howley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The concept of plea bargaining was not compractice until the nineteenth century (Langbein, 1978; Alschuler, 1979). Before that time, criminal defendants lacked representation in the court, leaving the judge to determine sentencing and punishment. Plea bargaining has become the prominent practice, with around 90% of cases, state and federal, resulting in a plea (Rabin, 1972; Lagoy, Senna, & Siegel, 1976; Alschuler, 1979; Alschuler, 1983; Scott & Stuntz, 1992; Schulhofer, 1992; Starkweather, 1992; Ross, 2006; Silveira, 2017). The concept of plea bargaining is inevitably accompanied by discretion, specifically prosecutorial discretion. Prosecutorial discretion grants prosecutors power in deciding what charges they would …

The Transfer Culture In College Basketball, Ariel Massengale

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In 2017, 18.5% of female women’s basketball players transferred. That ranked the highest it has ever been, second on the list for women’s sports and higher than any male sport (NCAA.org, 2018). The decision to transfer is a multifaceted issue that involves many reasons from generational differences, social media, technology, among other factors and has been rapidly increasing. For the lack of empirical studies, the foundation of this research was built on studies that focused on student retention because the same reasons a student may be retained could be the very reason a student decides to transfer depending on the …

Behavioral Similarities And Differences Among Symptoms Of Emetophobia, Disordered Eating, And Disgust, Jennifer Arden Petell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Emetophobia, also known as the specific phobia of vomiting (SPOV), is a clinical disorder with severe symptomatology and chronicity. However, there remains a significant lack of knowledge in overall conceptualization and etiological understanding. Recent literature has described this disorder within the context of abnormal eating disorders, despite the essential difference in symptom function between SPOV and disordered eating (Keyes & Veale, 2018; Volpe et al., 2015). Therefore, the present study sought to further the conceptualization and delineation of symptoms of emetophobia and disordered eating, as well as their potential relation with disgust. More specifically, it was hypothesized that symptoms of …

Dialogic Feedback And Its Effects On English Language Learners’ Writing Development: A Case Study, Shokhsanam Djalilova

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This exploratory case study aimed to investigate the meanings that second language (L2) learners derive from their writing purposes revising processes and their engagement with dialogic feedback. The goal was to grasp the meaning that revision experiences had for L2 learners (n=17) and to understand the context within which they were operating and its influence on their revision behavior. In order to gain a better understanding of L2 learner engagement and investment in the revision processes which were bound to time and context the case study was built upon an ecological-semiotic approach to learning. The case study aimed to construct …

An Exploration Of Relationships Between Parenting Stress And Primary Headache Disorders, Yelena Louise Johnson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Stress is the most commonly reported trigger for headache and stress affects headache both directly through resulting physiological changes and indirectly through its effects on lifestyle and coping behaviors. However one form of stress that has been neglected within headache is parenting. Parenting stress is defined as the imbalance between parents’ perceptions of available resources and their perceived demands of parenthood. Many variables have been established as predictors of parenting stress (e.g. demographic variables child behavior maternal depression) though fewer studies have examined its effects on health. Given that headache and parenthood share similar demographic distributions and risk factors exploration …

Legal Conditions Limiting The Possibility Of Acquiring Financing By Local Government Entities. Current State And Proposed Changes, Sebastian Skuza

Monografie/Monographs

The study primarily focuses on an attempt to answer the question formulated below: Is the currently functioning system of legal limitations applied in relation to the possibility of acquiring sources of refundable financing by local government entities justified?

The presented study is primarily an analysis of the currently applicable legal solutions from the perspective of borrowing needs of local government entities in the area of financial law as of 1 May 2018. The aim of this study is to present the barriers to the possibility of entering into financial commitments by local government entities within the national regulatory environment, their …

Ochrona Zdrowia I Gospodarka. Pacjenci, Świadczeniodawcy, Turystyka Medyczna, Józef Haczyński, Kazimierz Ryć, Zofia Skrzypczak

Monografie/Monographs

Na zmiany zachodzące w systemie ochrony zdrowia wywierają wpływ różne procesy wiążące się z demografią, zwłaszcza starzenie się społeczeństw, oraz wzrost zamożności społeczeństwa. Ochrona zdrowia ma więc za zadanie zarówno udzielenie pomocy, niezbędnej potrzebującym opieki medycznej – bez względu na ich sytuację materialną, lecz także – w coraz szerszym stopniu – powinna reagować na potrzeby pacjentów, którzy są znacznie bardziej wymagającymi klientami systemu opieki zdrowotnej, gotowymi finansować czy współfinansować zaspokojenie swoich potrzeb zdrowotnych. Niniejsza monografia podejmuje problemy w czterech grupach tematycznych. Na początku są omawiane konsekwencje starzenia się społeczeństw, następnie – wybrane problemy zabezpieczenia zdrowotnego pacjentów, w dalszej kolejności – …

Instrumenty Prawne Wspólnej Polityki Rolnej Wpływające Na Konkurencyjność Polskiego Rolnictwa, Agata Niewiadomska

Monografie/Monographs

Zagadnienia konkurencyjności rolnictwa należą do szczególnie złożonych z uwagi na konieczność stałego równoważenia z jednej strony potrzeb ochrony i wsparcia rolnictwa, kształtowania parytetu dochodów uzyskiwanych przez producentów rolnych oraz wynagrodzenia za społecznie oczekiwanie świadczenie usług i dóbr publicznych (zwłaszcza prośrodowiskowych i prospołecznych), a z drugiej − zachowania fundamentalnych zasad i wolności gospodarczych, zwłaszcza wolnej konkurencji. Problemy stąd wynikające Autorka dostrzegła i podjęła całkiem udaną próbę ich przedstawienia, opracowania i oceny, co wymagało wiedzy znacznie wykraczającej poza stricte prawniczą.

Z recenzji dr hab. Beaty Jeżyńskiej, prof. UMCS

Rozprawa stanowi pozycję bardzo wartościową, jest rezultatem rzetelnej i dojrzałej analizy prawa europejskiego, rodzimego …

Knowledge Circulation In Urban Geography/Urban Studies, 1990-2010: Testing The Discourse Of Anglo-American Hegemony Through Publication And Citation Patterns, Lily Kong, Junxi Qian

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This article approaches the question of Anglo-American hegemony in urban studies by examining publication and citation patterns. The past one or two decades have witnessed critical arguments about how knowledge production in social sciences is characterised by centre–periphery relations, and risks universalising US–American and European knowledge and epistemology. While not much systematic analysis has been done to address the extent to which urban knowledge has been shaped by Anglo-American centrism, it is not difficult to tell that the field is dominated by the Anglophone world in terms of authorship, institutional affiliation, the cities under scrutiny, and the urban theories arising. …

Book Review: Chinese And Buddhist Philosophy In Early Twentieth-Century German Thought By Eric S. Nelson, Steven Burik

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Eric Nelson has written a very comprehensive study of the reception of Chinese and EasternBuddhist philosophy in Western thought, with a special focus on the German thinkers of theearly twentieth century. Nelson shows great erudition in bringing together a wide variety ofthinkers from both East and West, including importantly some lesser known, but very relevantthinkers from both the Western tradition and Eastern philosophy. Although Nelson focusesmostly on the encounters and interactions between German philosophers and Chinese thinkers,his aim with this commendable book is wider. Nelson employs the encountersbetween German and Chinese thinkers in the wider context of comparative and/or interculturalphilosophy, …

Review: Red China’S Green Revolution: Technological Innovation, Institutional Change, And Economic Development Under The Commune, John A. Donaldson

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Professor Joshua Eisenman’s book, “Red China’s Green Revolution: Technological Innovation, Institutional Change, and Economic Development Under the Commune,” is as paradoxical as the enigmatic era that it seeks to illuminate. On the one hand, the volume contains compelling evidence – much of it newly and painstakingly collected provincial and county-level data – that the later Maoist period, particularly the 1970–1979 period, was not the disaster that it is sometimes portrayed to be. It fundamentally undermines the discredited (yet often rehearsed) fable that decollectivization was initiated and promulgated solely by desperate protesting farmers. The author supports his argument via an impressive …

Analyzing Somali Piracy Prosecutions, Molly Parent

SURE (Stonehill Undergraduate Research Experience)

•From 2001-2010 the number of piracy incidents spiked. Somali piracy differs from other forms of piracy because it has a distinct modus operandi. Whereas most piracy is theft, Somali attacks focus primarily on capturing vessels and holding them for ransom. •The vessel attacks occur primarily in the high seas, outside the territorial jurisdiction of any one nation. Therefore, Somali piracy cases have been heard in various courts around the world. Many cases have been prosecuted in Kenya, Seychelles, the Netherlands, as well as many other countries around the world. •This analysis examines the nature of these prosecutions, and whether there …

Burnout And Self-Stigma Of Seeking Psychological Help In Military Healthcare Providers, Odelia N. Mcfadden

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Military healthcare providers (HCPs) are tasked with maintaining the military’s mission readiness while balancing the roles of being providers and military members themselves. As such, military HCPs serve in various settings, including hospitals, clinics, ships, and austere environments. Military HCPs may experience a host of occupational stressors, such as long deployments, being in the line of fire, seeing dead or injured comrades, responding to mass casualty events, having excessive caseloads, and working prolonged hours. These factors make military HCPs susceptible to burnout. Unfortunately, stigma of seeking psychological help is prevalent in the military and may deter individuals from seeking the …

Student Participation In School Sponsored Extra-Curricular Activities At The Elementary School Level And The Impact Of Student Engagement, Kirsten D. Myers

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Getting students involved in their day to day educational processes is often challenging and, in some schools, systems appear almost unrealistic. Students in school do not often see the value of or make the connection with the importance of education. Students see movie stars such as Jennifer Lawrence drop out of school at fourteen, singers, rappers and others in the entertainment industry who are successful and make millions without an education. The potential of a YouTube posting, turning someone into a star looms in their imaginations and they think it could happen to them. Students today are even more enticed …

Does Early Screening Predict Special Education Placement By Age Five?, Samuel Josef Friedman

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

The Early Screening Inventory-Revised is an early childhood assessment used to screen three and four-year-olds entering preschool. This screener assesses basic skills and one’s level of functioning as he or she begins to learn in an academic environment. The purpose of this screener is to alert the school district about students who may struggle academically in a school- based setting. Based on the results of the assessment, students can receive academic or behavioral support from the school if the teacher and parents of the child deem the support necessary. Students who receive support from the school may or may not …

Examining The Impact Of Educational Modules On Self-Care, Burnout, And Professional Impairment On Graduate And Medical Students, Samantha Giangrande

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Graduate school is a time of academic rigor, personal growth, stress, change, fear, and confrontation. It is important for medical and other graduate students to prepare themselves to serve and treat their patients effectively. An important part of this involves learning skills to better manage challenges and demands through ongoing self-care. However, little research has examined what knowledge students have of self-care strategies and burnout or whether education about these constructs is lacking in higher education. The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of self-care and impairment modules for medical and other graduate students enrolled in an …

Family Cohesion And Perceived Stress As Predictors Of Quality Of Life In Maternal Caregivers Of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Emily Henry

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

The present study investigated factors that predict maternal caregivers’ quality of life in 115 mothers (25 - 55 years old) who had a child aged 5 to 12 years old with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Caregivers’ perceived stress and family cohesion were assessed to determine each factor’s predictive ability in predicting four domains of quality of life: physical health, psychological health, relationships, and environment. Results indicate that perceived stress significantly predicted all four quality-of-life domains. When adding in family cohesion, modest increases in predictive strength were observed for two domains of caregiver quality of life (i.e., psychological health and relationships). …

Describing The Impact Of Low Socioeconomic Status On School Performance, Barry Linden Cropp Ii

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

This study used archival school data compiled during the 2017-2018 school year to analyze the impact of family income, as determined by student eligibility for free- or reduced-lunch benefits, on several measures of school performance. This study was based upon an investigation of the effects of income on three dependent variables: academic performance, school attendance, and need for behavioral management interventions. Participants included 165 male students in third through fifth grade who attended a single elementary school in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States. Indicators of school performance were derived from data routinely collected and maintained in students' cumulative …

Sleep, Communicative Ability, And Diet As Predictors Of Aggression In Autism Spectrum Disorder, Rafat Omar

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Aggression is a common behavioral issue in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Aggression is often treated with evidence-based behavioral treatments, such as applied behavioral analysis and functional communication training. Another form of intervention that has grown in popularity is to alter the child’s diet. The most popular dietary intervention, the autism diet, has been used as a form of behavior management by parents and guardians for children diagnosed with ASD to address aggressive behavior; however, its use has not been strongly supported by research. The authors proposed that a more beneficial way of understanding aggression in ASD is to …

Long-Term Use Of Beta-Blocker Medication In Pediatric Long Qt Syndrome Patients: Neuropsychological Profiles, Kara J. Rudisill

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Long QT syndrome (LQTS) is a heart rhythm disorder characterized by a disruption of the heart’s electrical activity that may cause accelerated and uncontrolled heartbeats referred to as ventricular fibrillation. LQTS is primarily treated with beta-blocker medications, which reduce the risk of experiencing an arrhythmia through regulating the heart rate. However, the potential neuropsychological side-effects associated with the use of beta-blocker medication may impact the executive functioning skills, mental health, and behavior of the affected pediatric population at home. As a result, a child’s academic performance and emotional regulation etiology may be misunderstood by his or her parents, caregivers, and …

The Effect Of Social Problem-Solving, Health Anxiety, And Psychological Distress On Breast Cancer Genetic Testing Decisions In A Sample Of Healthy Women, Alexandria Muench

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Breast cancer is a leading cause of death in women in the United States, with hereditary breast cancers accounting for approximately 10% of the diagnoses. Nevertheless, women can decrease their risk by obtaining genetic testing and are often referred for the test if one or more of their relatives has been diagnosed with breast cancer and has the BRCA/BRCA2 cancer mutation. The purpose of the current study was to examine predictors of healthy women’s (ages 18 to 35) hypothetical decisions about genetic testing and prophylactic treatments for the BRCA1/BRCA2 genetic mutations by measuring social problem solving (SPS) variables, health anxiety, …