Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Expected Risks And Exacerbations Of Poverty, Mental Health Disorders, And Maternal Mortality From Abortion Bans: A Comparative Literature Analysis, Daniel J. Francisco

All Master's Theses

Background. Early termination of a pregnancy (hereinafter referred to as an “abortion”) has been debated in the United States (U.S.) for decades, without much regard to the negative outcomes that forced pregnancies have for those assigned female at birth regarding poverty, mental health and maternal mortality. In 1973, access to safe abortions was protected so long that the procedure was done within the legal gestational period and/or was necessary for the health and safety of the patient (Blackmun, 1972). Unfortunately, in 2022, the Supreme Court took that protection away and made it legal for states to determine the reproductive rights …

Ballistic Experiments With A Sample Of 3-D Printed Columbia Plateau Projectile Point Types, Aren Orsen

All Master's Theses

Recent advances in 3-D scanning and printing offer the means for experimental archaeologists to utilize reproductions of artifacts for analysis and interpretation. In this case study I accurately reproduce a sample of Columbia Plateau projectile points, measure their ballistic properties with an experimental approach, and test the effectiveness and function of point types representing different time periods. Eight morphologically distinct projectile points were 3-D scanned, printed, and test fired into a clay target. Velocity, kinetic energy, momentum, penetration, and wound channel size were measured. Results indicate all eight arrow mounted point types were suitable for small to medium game. Variations …

Security Analysis: A Critical Thinking Approach, Michael W. Collier

EKUOPEN: Open Textbooks

Security Analysis: A Critical-Thinking Approach is for anyone desiring to learn techniques for generating the best answers to complex questions and best solutions to complex problems. It furnishes current and future analysts in national security, homeland security, law enforcement, and corporate security an alternative, comprehensive process for conducting both intelligence analysis and policy analysis. The target audience is upper-division undergraduate students and new graduate students, along with entry-level practitioner trainees. The book centers on a Security Analysis Critical-Thinking Framework that synthesizes critical-thinking and existing analytic techniques. Ample examples are provided to assist readers in comprehending the material. Newly created material …

Effects Of Social Isolation And Adolescent Ethanol Exposure On Adult Drinking And Nicotine Co-Use, Jakob Shaykin

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Alcohol use often begins in adolescence and can lead to increased susceptibility to AUD in adulthood. Stress in the form of social isolation during adolescence can also prompt substance use disorders later in adulthood. This thesis determined if exposure to ethanol (EtOH) during adolescence and social isolation alters the trajectory of alcohol and nicotine intake during adulthood. In Experiment 1, adolescent male and female Sprague-Dawley rats were administered intermittent injections of EtOH (2g/kg 20% EtOH, IP) or saline (PND 28-41). EtOH consumption was measured in adulthood (PND 49-55) using a 2-bottle choice procedure where one bottle contained a 0.2% saccharin/15% …

The Effects Of Extended Fructose Access On Relative Value And Demand For Fructose, Saccharin, And Ventral Tegmental Stimulation, Megan Halloran

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Globally, food addiction (FA) is a growing area of research and is largely attributed to the availability of foods that are both energy dense and high in fats and sugars. Further, it has been suggested, that sugar and fat, when consumed frequently, have properties similar to drugs of abuse. While the validity of FA is questioned, researchers have drawn parallels between substance use disorder (SUD) and FA. For example, sugar binge models emphasize craving, withdrawal and binging as primary components of FA, which are also hallmarks of SUD. Additionally, both natural rewards, like sugars, and drug rewards act on the …

Body-Based Harassment And Eating Disorder Symptomology In Cisgender, Transgender, And Gender Nonconforming Individuals, Sharla D. Biefield

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Past research estimates that over 60% of adolescents and young adults report eating disorder symptomology (EDS), increasing their risk for psychiatric and physical comorbidities, substance abuse, and self-harm. EDS rates are also higher among transgender and gender nonconforming (TGNC) individuals. TGNC individuals also experience higher rates of bias-based harassment, than their cisgender peers. Much of this harassment is body-based harassment (BBH), such that the harassment often targets aspects of an individual’s body. The current study utilized a pantheoretical framework, incorporating minority stress theory and objectification theory, and a multi-method approach to investigate (1) if BBH increases TGNC individuals’ risk for …

Bipolarity Of Maladaptive Personality Traits In The Alternative Model Of Personality Disorders, Alexandra Hines

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

It has been posited that extremely high or extremely low levels of any personality trait in the Five Factor Model of Personality can be maladaptive. However, the Alternative Model of Personality Disorders (AMPD) in Section III of the DSM-5 is composed almost exclusively of unipolar maladaptive traits. The lack of maladaptively low neuroticism and high extraversion fails to fully cover psychopathy; the lack of maladaptively high extraversion fails to cover histrionic personality disorder (HPD); the lack of maladaptively high agreeableness fails to cover dependent personality disorder (DPD); and the lack of maladaptively high conscientiousness fails to cover obsessive-compulsive personality disorder …

Calcium Imaging Of Central Amygdala Activity After Fentanyl Escalation, Samantha Malone

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Evidence suggests that rats given long access (LgA) sessions to self-administer (SA) opioids escalate their intake, while also showing greater withdrawal severity and drug-induced reinstatement compared to rats maintained on short access (ShA) daily SA sessions. Little is known about the neural changes that occur during opioid escalation that may impact withdrawal and relapse. Past work examining opioid SA using ShA sessions in rodents has identified the central amygdala (CeA) as an area of interest that becomes hyperactive in acute withdrawal and may be involved in the incubation of craving that occurs after protracted withdrawal. However, these studies have not …

Examining Allostatic Load As A Biological Mechanism Linking Childhood Adversity And Pediatric Pain, Angela Pascale

Theses and Dissertations

Despite a strong literature base relating childhood adversity to pain, the biological mechanisms underlying these associations remain unclear. Theoretical and preliminary empirical evidence supports allostatic load as a potential biological mechanism, though prior studies investigating associations between childhood adversity and elevated allostatic load and/or between elevated allostatic load and poorer pain outcomes have primarily focused on adult populations and individual allostatic load indicators rather than a comprehensive index. Thus, the current study built upon prior literature by testing longitudinal relationships between childhood adversity and multiple biological indicators spanning across physiological systems (i.e., comprehensive allostatic load index) and pediatric pain outcomes …

Children With Special Healthcare Needs: The Cost Of Medical Care, Kasey Dye

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore factors that impact children with special healthcare needs’ (CSHCN) health insurance coverage and out-of-pocket medical expenses. The Ecological Model for Health Promotion developed by McLeroy et al. (1988) was the guiding theoretical framework for this study. Using data from the 2020 National Survey of Children’s Health, I conducted descriptive statistics, logistic regressions, and multilevel modeling analyses to determine if health insurance coverage and out-of-pocket expenses for CSHCN differed by individual, family, and community, organization, and policy factors. Results indicated that race, gender, disorder category, insurance type, and family’s federal poverty level were …

Home Disruption And Substance Use: The Moderated-Mediating Role Of Family Conflict And Stress Among Racial-Ethnic Minoritized College Students, Geovani Muñoz

Theses and Dissertations

The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted first-generation college students who identify as racial-ethnic minorities (REM). Aside from the academic and health repercussions caused by COVID-19, little is known if home disruptions have increased substance use for REM college students. Specifically, increased home disruptions may directly relate to substance use and indirect relationships through increased family conflict and stress. Therefore, this master's thesis examined the direct relationships between home disruption and substance use. I also examined the relationships between home disruption and family conflict, as well as home disruption and stress. Further, I also investigated the relationships between family conflict and …

Incorporating A Developmental Perspective Into Gene Identification Models For Alcohol Use Behaviors, Nathaniel S. Thomas

Theses and Dissertations

Frequent alcohol use can lead to alcohol use disorder, which accounts for three million deaths and over 133 million life years lost to disability and death worldwide per year. Alcohol use behaviors unfold across development, beginning with initiation of drinking and progressing through various escalating stages of use. Alcohol use behaviors are also under genetic influence. Genome-wide association represents the state-of-the-science statistical methodology for identifying genes associated with alcohol use outcomes. However, contemporary genome-wide association study (GWAS) methods typically do not account for variability in genetic effects throughout development. In this project, I applied novel multivariate genomic methods to combine …

Assessing The Perceived Impact Of A Local, Community-Engaged Mural Project On Preservice Art Educators In Foundational Coursework, Caitlin M. Black

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study merged the methodological frameworks of qualitative case study and narrative inquiry (Sonday et. al, 2020) to assess the perceived impact of a local, community-engaged mural art project (Mending Walls) on undergraduate preservice art educators in foundational coursework. The study was grounded in existing research in three areas: community-engaged murals, community-engaged pedagogy, and community-engaged teacher preparation. These concepts were used to frame the study and provide further rationale for the inquiry. The purpose of this case study was to understand how undergraduate preservice art educators perceived the impact of using a local, community-engaged mural project (Mending Walls) in …

Family-Based Support As Social Determinants Of Health Protective Factor On Depression Of Parents Of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Bisola E. Duyile

Theses and Dissertations

All parents experience challenges in their caregiving roles (Barańczuk & Pisula, 2020). However, parents raising a child/children with disabilities experience different social barriers (Oliver, 1996) that may also contribute to additional stressors in their caregiving role (Tomeny, 2016). Although these parents, on average, have reported greater symptoms of depression than parents of typically developing children, research shows that parents who reported receiving social support had lower symptoms of depression and stress (Das et al., 2017; Singh et al., 2017). Through the social determinants of health (SDOH) framework (ODPHP, 2022), the present study investigated informal/family-based support and its protective impact on …

Black Racial Identity And Externalizing Symptoms: The Regulatory Role Of Dyadic Relationships, Sultan A. Hubbard

Theses and Dissertations

This study explored caregiver impact on Black racial identity (BRI) and externalizing through the integration of BRI, racial socialization (RS), and social support theoretical frameworks. The study used 85 Black undergraduates (Mean age =19.3, SD=3.43) who rated three caregivers, respectively. Restricted maximum likelihood estimation was conducted to estimate variance components. BRI, RS, internalizing, and externalizing variables reflected significant trait effects and dyadic effects. However, racial centrality and public regard did not reflect significant dyadic effects. Participant burden due to randomization of caregivers and items likely suppressed dyadic effects. Moreover, caregivers who evoked private regard were perceived as having high cultural …

Driven By Personality: Exploring The Relationship Between Custom Cars And Self-Expression, Tharwa Dalansi

Theses and Dissertations

Custom Car Culture (CCC) is a form of creativity that emerges from personal identities and passions. It involves the restoration, modification and personal adornment of commercially manufactured cars. This process creates a journey, where the enthusiast goes through multiple phases of self-reflection. But due to a lack of local resources, Qatar-based CCC enthusiasts often have to send their cars abroad to Dubai or Japan in order to customize them, relinquishing creative control in the process.

In response to these challenges, based on observations and interviews conducted among actual CCC enthusiasts, I develop a platform for engagement between these enthusiasts and …

Interiorization And Localization: An Analysis Of Immigration Enforcement In Local Contexts, Manuel N. Leiva

Theses and Dissertations

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is a federal agency that plays a large role in surveilling, apprehending, detaining, incarcerating, and deporting undocumented immigrants in the United States. Due to constraints on the number of ICE’s available personnel and resources, the agency relies on deputizing, or devolving to local law enforcement agencies the authority to enforce federal immigration policies. Prior to the 1990s, the enforcement of policies directed at controlling flows of undocumented immigrants was generally under the purview of federal law enforcement agencies and administrators, not state or local ones. The attacks on September, 11^th 2001 represented a flashpoint, …

Profiles Of Family Functioning In Pediatric Hematology-Oncology Patients: Longitudinal Associations With Child Well-Being, Sydney Sumrall

Theses and Dissertations

This study aims to assess 1) patterns of family functioning and 2) longitudinal associations between family functioning patterns and well-being in a vulnerable cohort of children with chronic illness. Caregivers of hematology (16.4%) and oncology (83.6%) patients ages 7-20 (N=55; M_age = 13.3 [SD = 2.7]; 52.7% female; 45.5% non-Latinx White, 38.2% Black or African American, 12.7% Latinx, 1.8% Asian, and 1.8% multi-racial,) reported on family functioning via the Family Assessment Device. Cluster analyses identified three mutually exclusive clusters: one high adaptive group, one moderate adaptive group, and one maladaptive group. Group membership was not significantly …

The Lived Experience Of Postpartum Sleep For Black And White Women, Ashley R. Macpherson

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study utilized a phenomenological research approach (van Manen, 1990), and intersectional feminist lens (Collins, 2000; Crenshaw ,1989; hooks, 2000), to uncover the lived experience of sleep in the postpartum period. Participants were 10 mothers who were less than 12 months postpartum. Data collection consisted of in-depth interviews. Data analysis procedures followed recommendations by van Manen (1990, 1997). In order to increase the trustworthiness and rigor of the study, the researcher engaged in reflexive journaling, member checking, and peer debriefing. The results were organized into six themes; 1) the importance of the sleep environment, 2) anxiety and hypervigilance, …

Physical Activity In Adolescents With And Without Adhd: Longitudinal Associations With Sleep, Adhd, And Internalizing Symptoms, Caroline N. Cusick Lowman

Theses and Dissertations

Adolescents with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are at risk for developing clinically significant sleep problems and comorbid internalizing symptoms. Physical activity (PA) has significant positive associations with a variety of health outcomes, including sleep and aspects of mental health. As such, the US Department of Health and Human Services recommends adolescents receive at least 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) per day. However, it is unknown whether adolescents with ADHD have different patterns of physical activity compared to their peers. Importantly, it may be that PA can serve as a buffer between ADHD symptoms and development of comorbid difficulties with sleep …

Building A Macrosystems Ecology Framework To Identify Links Between Environmental And Human Health, Felisha N. Walls

Theses and Dissertations

The structure and functions of natural systems continue to be degraded by human activities such as land-use change. One potential consequence that has received relatively little attention is a corresponding decline in human health. Altered ecosystems can present a host of risks to human health. Yet the consequences of environmental degradation are rarely considered in national-scale research on human well-being. The guiding objective of this work is to compare stream health and socioeconomic metrics with spatially congruent human health metrics throughout the conterminous United States, then to identify potential links between environmental health, socioeconomic factors and human health. Environmental health …

Exploring Polyamorous Relationship Experiences Of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, And Pansexual Individuals, Jiale Man

Theses and Dissertations

Polyamory is a type of relationship under the consensual non-monogamy relationship umbrella that assumes the possibility, validity, and worthwhileness of maintaining romantic, sexual, and intimate relationships with multiple people simultaneously. In Western society, the prevalence and domination of mononormativity have led to the marginalization of relationships alternative to monogamy (i.e., polyamory). As a result, individuals in polyamorous relationships continue to experience bias, stigma, and discrimination at varying levels. With a rise in public interest in CNM in the past two decades, scientists and researchers have slowly started to examine various topics related to CNM, including its prevalence, public attitudes toward …

Association Of Interpersonal Trauma And Polygenic Risk Scores With Depressive Symptoms In College Students, Rowan K. O'Hara

Theses and Dissertations

Major depression is considered a complex trait influenced by both polygenic risk factors and environmental exposures, such as childhood trauma. This study applied statistical genetic methods to calculate aggregate genetic risk for major depression to predict depressive symptoms scores in a college student sample. Data were from the Spit for Science (S4S) study in which college students from a large urban university self-reported interpersonal trauma (IPT) exposure prior to college and depressive symptoms from the past month (N = 7502; ancestry group: 20% African [AFR], 12% Admixed Americas [AMR], 10% East Asian [EAS], 49% European [EUR], 8% South Asian [SAS]). …

Clinical Inquiry Question Development Checklist, Roy E. Brown

VCU Libraries Faculty and Staff Publications

The Clinical Inquiry Question Development Checklist is a handout used in instructional sessions with nurses about the clinical inquiry process. This process includes evidence-based practice, performance improvement, and research. The revised handout contains information related to the performance improvement process and various other aspects of the clinical inquiry process.

From Building To Dwelling: Unfolding Infinity Through Bioregional Fulfillment, Sanjana Bhatnagar

Pitzer Senior Theses

The causes of anthropogenic climate change touch every feature of our modern-day existences. Approaches to sustainability tend to focus on material actions, but unsustainable practices are guided by an ontological orientation of individuality and human exceptionalism. This thesis provides an alternate account of being that decenters individuality through weaving the metaphysics of Fazang of the Huayan School of Mahayana Buddhism with the metaphysics of Martin Heidegger. To encompass the whole of the relational network that constitutes and conditionally defines our existence, I expand Heidegger’s account of locales as relational sites which are put forth solely by humans to an account …

“If It Ain’T One Thing, It’S Another”: Black Lgbtq Students And Their Experiences With School Discipline And Punishment, Quentin Jenkins

Pitzer Senior Theses

School officials have disproportionately applied disciplinary policies and exclusionary practices to Black and LGBTQ youth, causing those students to be negatively sanctioned. Characterized by instruments of surveillance, metal detectors, and the presence of law enforcement, schools in the United States have significantly exacerbated the negative experiences these children have within educational spaces. Schools foster “prison-like” environments and subject Black LGBTQ youth to hyper-surveillance, thus increasing their likelihood of coming in contact with the juvenile justice system. Grounded in BlackCrit and Quare theory, this paper analyzes how the coupled intersecting identities of Blackness and Queerness lead Black LGBTQ youth to have …

Entangled Mangrove Roots: The Shrimp Industry, Ancestral Afro-Descendant People, And Community Resistance In Esmeraldas, Ecuador, O'Philia Le

Pitzer Senior Theses

Mangroves are one of the most important ecosystems because of the many services they provide on a local and global scale, but in contrast, are one of the most threatened by anthropogenic activities at a global level. Being sources of food for various kinds of fish, crustaceans, and mollusks, they are essential for the economy, culture, and livelihood of locals in Esmeraldas, Ecuador. This thesis takes an environmental justice approach in the discussion of the loss of mangroves in Esmeraldas, Ecuador. While toxic industries may not be apparent at first, environmental injustice prevails in adverse human health effects, environmental degradation, …

Survey Based Investigation On Diet/Bmi In Indian-American Communities, Arjan Deol

Pitzer Senior Theses

Obesity is defined as a disease where abnormal or excessive fat accumulation presents risks to one’s health. It is also associated with a wide variety of metabolic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, metabolic syndrome, sleep apnea, and cardiovascular health. In recent years, the rates of obesity have continued to grow in the United States, especially amongst the Indian-American community. Asians have a lower BMI cutoff ( ≥27.5 kg/m2) for obesity instead of the standard ≥30.0 kg/m2 recommendations by CDC due to a higher prevalence of weight-related diseases at lower BMI and carrying 3-5% more body fat than an average Western …

An Analysis On How Housing Status Influences The Gut-Brain-Axis For Populations In And Around The Skid Row Area Of Los Angeles, California, Mauricio Guzman

Pitzer Senior Theses

Over recent years, the “microbiota-gut-brain axis” (MGBA) has garnered significant attention in the scientific community. Specifically, perturbations of the MGBA via stress and dietary intake have been linked to a wide-range of diseases including gastrointestinal diseases, metabolic diseases, mood disorders, and cognitive diseases. However, most studies have been solely conducted on mice models and have yet to consider the more complex, intricate systems that impact the human body. In addition, researchers have yet to consider the populations who may be most susceptible to chronic stress and negative dietary outcomes. Drawing from the fields of medical sociology, non-invasive human biology, and …

Diversity, Equity, & Exclusion: Examining Jewish Identity & Antisemitism As Missing Pieces Of Dei And Ethnic Studies Education, Katie Meitchik

Pitzer Senior Theses

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) is a theory and practice that focuses on systemic structures, inequities, and social change by examining concepts such as race, gender, class, sexuality, ethnicity, ability, and religion. Incorporating DEI initiatives into learning spaces can lead to a deeper sense of self, stronger coalition building, increased civic engagement, and a sense of healing, resistance, and belonging. Although a nationwide criteria for using DEI practices in education has not yet been implemented as a key component to public school teaching, there are programs emerging with the intent to utilize the theory. This has led to a movement …