bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Spill-over of memory effect in younger and older adults : can emotional information become associated with neutral episodic details
Authors:   , Gargya Sanchita
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] An extensive literature on the influence of emotion on memory asserts that memory for emotional information is remembered better than information lacking emotional content (Kensinger, 2009; Talmi et al., 2007; for review see Hamann, 2001). While decades of research have agreed upon memory advantages for emotional versus neutral information, research studying the impact of emotion on memory for associated details has shown differential effects of emotion on associated neutral details (Erk et al., 2003; Righi et al., 2015; Steinmetz et al., 2015). Using emotional-neutral stimulus pairs, the current set of experiments present novel findings from aging perspective to systematically explore the impact of embedded emotional information on associative memory representation of associated neutral episodic memory details. To accomplish this, three experiments were conducted. In all three experiments, younger and older participants were shown three types of emotional faces (happy, sad, and neutral) along with names. The first experiment investigated whether associative instructions and repetition of face-name pairs influence and promote formation of implicit emotional face-name associations. Using intentional and incidental instructions to encode face-name associations, in Experiment 2 and 3, respectively, participants' memory for whether names, shown with different facial expressions, can trigger emotional content of a study episode in the absence of the original emotional context at test, was assessed. Results indicate that while both younger and older adults show that names are integrated better with happy facial expressions than with sad expressions, older adults fail to show a benefit for associating a name with a happy emotional expression in the absence of associative encoding instructions. Overall, these results suggest that happy facial expressions can be implicitly learnt with or spilled over to associated neutral episodic details, like names. However, this integration is accomplished by older adults only under instructions to form face-name association.
Biomineralizers from the proterozoic to today : assessing taxonomy and paleoecology through the lens of taphonomy
Authors:   , Selly Tara Lee
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] The onset of metazoan predation is presumed to have triggered an evolutionary arms race of prey defenses, including the advent of biomineralization. Escalating biological innovations profoundly affected the dynamics of early metazoan ecosystems and ultimately culminated in the geologically rapid radiation of true metazoans during the "Cambrian Explosion". The first direct evidence of predation was recorded in the first biomineralizing metazoan, specifically as drill holes in the skeletal tube of Cloudina. The terminal Ediacaran Period (~551-541) hosts a diverse array of tubular organisms, and holds vast potential for contributing to our understanding of both biotic turnover and the advent of stem lineages into the Cambrian. The first two chapters herein assess the taxonomy of newly reported tubiculous organisms from a locality in the Great Basin, Nevada, USA, using advanced microscopic techniques. The results of this study erect two new taxa and better resolve the phylogeny of these enigmatic organisms. In the last chapter, I report upon modern biological processes, such as the influence of predation, in molluscan communities. Specifically, this study considers the influence of environmental factors and how they operate within spatial and chemical gradients in order to assess the stratigraphic scale of the incipient fossil record at Pigeon Creek, San Salvador, Bahamas. This study reinforces the idea that small scale local environmental gradients can strongly influence biotic communities and that spatial and environmental variation must be considered in order to properly interpret temporal trends in the fossil record.
Cooperative control of multi-agent systems with time-delays
Authors:   , Xie Zhentao
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] In this dissertation, we designed two cooperative control algorithms for multi-agent systems with time-delays. The first one is Robust Sliding-Mode Cooperative Control for Multiple Time-Delay Systems with Model Uncertainties and Disturbance, in which, it designed a sliding mode cooperative control law for a general time-delay system with model uncertainty and external disturbance. For the delay-independent system, a sliding surface is constructed and a feasible solution to the LMI based on the Lyapunov stability theory is derived. The model uncertainty term is included in the control design by using a matrix factorization method. The second one is Cooperative Control for Multiple Agents with Time Varying Delay and Model Uncertainties, in which, it designed a cooperative control law for distributed multiple agents to follow a leader consensually under time-varying delay and model uncertainties. Comparing with the first control law design, our first promotion is to design a consensus control law for leader followers under time delay dependent case, which releases the two constraint conditions, which are the flaws in previous works. Our second promotion is that we take the time varying delay into consideration. In addition to the theoretical study, we also did experiment test of the cooperative control algorithms on Quadrotor-UAVs. We tested the system stability and the time-delay effects on systems. The results proved the validity of the designed control algorithms.
Keeping up with the Joneses: Relative economic voting, electoral participation, and reference points
Authors:   , Park Beomseob
Published: April 2021

This research explores the role relative economy plays in vote choice and turnout. The decision to vote and for whom to vote are heavily predicated on selecting competent policymakers based on their performance handling the economy. To do so, voters must infer the leader's competence based on observations of the economy. I argue that voters can better extract the 'competence signal' by comparing their own economy with the economies of reference countries that share a great deal of familiarity, similarity and connectivity. A relatively strong economy signals incumbent competence whereas a relatively poor one signals their incompetence, and thus, incumbent vote share and voter turnout should be a function of the relative economy. By selecting appropriate reference points from news media in 22 different languages from 33 democracies, this research demonstrates that incumbents tend to be rewarded with increasing vote shares for out-performing growth and are punished for growth that under-performs relative to reference economies. It also reveals that the relatively poor economy makes voters alienated and indifferent from politics, which eventually leads them to abstain from voting. This research has an important implication for democratic electoral accountability; despite frequent instability between the economy and vote choice, this research reaffirms democratic theorists by showing that elections offer citizens periodic chances to change policymakers.
Labeling HIV-1 nucleic acids during infection and effect of MOV10 in HBV replication
Authors:   , Puray Chavez Maritza Nieves
Published: April 2021

Technical limitations in simultaneous microscopic visualization of RNA, DNA, and proteins of HIV have curtailed progress in this field. To address this need we have developed a microscopy approach, multiplex immunofluorescent cell-based detection of DNA, RNA and Protein (MICDDRP), which is based on branched DNA in situ hybridization technology. MICDDRP enables simultaneous single-cell visualization of HIV spliced and unspliced RNA, cytoplasmic and nuclear DNA, and Gag. We use MICDDRP to visualize incoming capsid cores containing RNA and/or nascent DNA and follow reverse transcription kinetics. We have also reported transcriptional "bursts" of nascent RNA from integrated proviral DNA. The major barrier towards a cure is the ability of the virus to remain dormant in long-lived cells known as the latent HIV reservoirs; however, the mechanisms that regulate latency are poorly understood. HIV-1 integration is directed to regions of the genome by the chromatin binding protein lens epitheliumderived growth factor (LEDGF/p75, referred to here as LEDGF). In the absence of LEDGF, HIV-1 infection is markedly less efficient. We report for the first time that knocking out LEDGF results in upregulation of antisense HIV-1 RNA transcription. Antisense HIV-1 transcripts are abundant in a higher proportion of cells when the Integrase-LEDGF interaction is lost, whether by knocking out LEDGF or by pharmacological inhibition. We also demonstrate that intriguingly, antisense RNA is rapidly lost from infected cells. Using a dual reporter virus to investigate the association between HIV-1 antisense RNA and latency, we have determined that antisense RNA has low expression in â€œlatentlyâ€ infected cells. Hepatitis B virus infection is a major health problem, there are more than 350 million people living with chronic HBV. Immune system can clear infection during the acute phase in immune-competent patients. A better understanding of the immune response against HBV infection may lead to new insights a find a cure. RNA helicases contribute to the immune response and some also have antiviral effects. MOV10 is a helicase RNA protein that has detrimental effect in HIV infection and HCV replication under MOV10 depletion or overexpression. Considering that HBV replication rely on reverse transcription to form DNA from pre-genomic RNA, we study the effect of MOV10 in HBV replication. Our data suggest that while MOV10 overexpression leads to HBV reduction, suppression of MOV10 enhances HBV replication.
A case study of the Global Food Security Act of 2016 : interorganizational policymaking and food security d/discourses
Authors:   , Schraedley Megan Annette Koch
Published: April 2021

For this dissertation case study, I examined how individuals, especially those who worked on interorganizational food security programming and policymaking, discussed organizational policy messaging and the discursively constructed meanings around their work related to food security. I focused on the communicative linkages between a US government development organization and the problem of food insecurity because this condition continues to plague nearly a billion people around the world. Specifically, I investigated the communicative processes leading up to the passage of the Global Food Security Act (2016), including the organizational construction of meaning that helped get the bipartisan legislation passed at a contentious time in our government's history. I conducted in-depth, qualitative interviews with food security professionals and coded documents related to the passage of the GFSA. This study serves a dual purpose: 1) The findings provide evidence of language convergence/meaning divergence that adds to a deeper scholarly understanding of how policies are created and interpreted differently, and 2) the findings offer insight into the ways in which a US government organization uses strategic ambiguity to persuade stakeholders to fund food security programming and support impactful international programming.
3D city scale reconstruction using wide area motion imagery
Authors:   , Viguier Raphael
Published: April 2021

3D reconstruction is one of the most challenging but also most necessary part of computer vision. It is generally applied everywhere, from remote sensing to medical imaging and multimedia. Wide Area Motion Imagery is a field that has gained traction over the recent years. It consists in using an airborne large field of view sensor to cover a typically over a square kilometer area for each captured image. This is particularly valuable data for analysis but the amount of information is overwhelming for any human analyst. Algorithms to efficiently and automatically extract information are therefore needed and 3D reconstruction plays a critical part in it, along with detection and tracking. This dissertation work presents novel reconstruction algorithms to compute a 3D probabilistic space, a set of experiments to efficiently extract photo realistic 3D point clouds and a range of transformations for possible applications of the generated 3D data to filtering, data compression and mapping. The algorithms have been successfully tested on our own datasets provided by Transparent Sky and this thesis work also proposes methods to evaluate accuracy, completeness and photo-consistency. The generated data has been successfully used to improve detection and tracking performances, and allows data compression and extrapolation by generating synthetic images from new point of view, and data augmentation with the inferred occlusion areas.
An attentional theory of issue-carrying capacity
Authors:   , Yildirim Tevfik Murat
Published: April 2021

A plethora of research in cognitive and behavioral psychology showed that there are significant differences in the way men and women process political and social information. It has been widely accepted that women show more social concern for and tend to be more reactive to the problems in their social environments. The potential implications of these distinct cognitive styles, however, have received scant academic attention in political science research. In particular, we have scant knowledge of the extent to which differing cognitive styles affect the scope of problem identification and prioritization. Integrating insights from both political behavior and psychology research, this dissertation argues that women's lower cognitive threshold of urgency for societal issues should have important political implications. More specifically, argue that, compared with their male counterparts, female decision makers should attend to a wider variety of societal issues facing their country. My empirical strategy is two-fold. First, with over 930,000 respondents over the past 75 years in the US, I undertake the most comprehensive test of gender differences in issue attention and show that such differences are much stronger than previously thought and invariant across time. Second, utilizing the European Election Study surveys conducted in 12 European countries (N=13,549), 94 nationally representative surveys conducted between 1960 and 2015 in the US (N=110,796), and original datasets of legislative speeches from Turkey, I test the argument that women differ from men in the scope of societal issues with which they are involved and find strong empirical evidence for it. Results show that women do indeed attend to a broader range of issues when asked about the most important problems facing their country and speak about a wider range of issues in legislatures, a finding that is insensitive to various alternative model specifications and robustness tests.
Battles for branding : political marketing and U.S. Senate debates
Authors:   , Bramlett Josh C.
Published: April 2021

Televised political debates, as two-sided information flows, are dynamic political communication events that inform, persuade, and entertain voters. Political debates provide candidates the opportunity to brand themselves to voters, and political marketing provides a framework with which to analyze communication effects and how voters process and retain information in memory. Through an analysis of survey responses from participants who viewed a 2018 U.S. Senate debate, the current study incorporates a political marketing perspective to analyze how televised political debates influence voters' brand associations toward candidates. My results led me to develop the concept of Debate Branding, where participating in a debate is more likely to generate positive brand associations with supporters than it is to generate negative brand associations with detractors. Each of the debating candidates in this study saw more positive in-group associations than negative out-group associations, highlighting the power of debates as branding opportunities. Moreover, brand favorability, i.e., how many positive or negative thoughts individuals had toward candidates, was a significant predictor of candidate evaluations. Additionally, respondents offered far more brand associations about the candidates as people than they did about the policy positions or party affiliation of the candidates. This finding contributes to the literature on candidate image and issues in political communication. Debates, as persuasive events, can produce cognitive involvement in voters. Through an experimental design, my study explored how involvement influenced the brand associations of viewers. I found that personal relevance remains a core path to involvement, while also finding tentative, yet intriguing support for a new path to involvement in political messages: nationalized partisan involvement. Cognitive involvement, in the form of brand associations, was highest when a debate was both personally relevant and nationalized. This has implications for the modern political media and electoral environment.Televised political debates are largely studied at the presidential level and there is a corresponding paucity of literature on the effects of viewing Senate debates. I found that viewing a televised U.S. Senate debate promoted information acquisition, had substantive influences on attitudes such as political information efficacy, candidate evaluations, intention to vote for a candidate, and intention to vote in the midterm elections, and had marginal influences on political cynicism and interest. These findings have implications for educators, television programmers, political campaigns, and civic groups across the country. Presidential debates are not the only debates that have positive democratic outcomes.
A quantitative program evaluation of the impact of a three-teacher act preparatory model at a midwestern suburban high school
Authors:   , Early Christopher
Published: April 2021

The purpose of this study was to determine whether an ACT prep program taught by three teachers at a Midwestern U.S. high school, each with certification in the ACT subtest topic they taught, generated statistically significant results in the ACT scores of its participants. The secondary purpose of this study was also to determine whether the three-teacher ACT prep course effectively served underrepresented students, helping to close multiple ethnic and socioeconomic achievement gaps (Darling-Hammond, 2000). Ultimately, the three-teacher model did not demonstrate statistically significant differences in scores for its participants, including underrepresented students. Using the economics of schooling as a conceptual framework that "views the schooling process as an input-output model, where the inputs are students, teachers, and school resources and the outputs are student learning achievements" (Qiu and Wu, 2011, p. 65), it was revealed that the inputs of the three-teacher model were not worth the outputs, when outputs can be considered statistically significant differences in scores.
The development and validation of the disaster adaptation and resilience scale
Authors:   , First Jennifer
Published: April 2021

Disaster events both in the U.S. and worldwide are increasing in severity and prevalence. In response to the threat of disasters, the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has issued calls for developing well-tested assessment tools that operationalize specific protective factors associated with resilience to disaster. Recognizing this need, this dissertation project developed and validated the Disaster Adaptation and Resilience Scale (DARS) to measure specific domains found to support adaptive responses in individuals exposed to disaster events. The development and validation processes of the scale occurred across two phases. Phase I consisted of the construct development, item generation, and expert review. Phase II conducted a full validation evaluation of the psychometric properties of the scale and tested direct and indirect relationships between disaster stress exposure, DARS, and mental health in a sample of adults (N=625) using structural equation modeling (SEM). Results found DARS demonstrated psychometric properties that support its use among adults experiencing disaster. Limitations and implications of the scale are discussed, including application within clinical, research, and policy settings.
"Little people can learn about race" : thinking with the wake in a first-grade classroom
Authors:   , Fontanella-Nothom Oona R.
Published: April 2021

This dissertation sought to explore the processes and actions that unfolded in a first-grade classroom when teaching and learning about topics of race and racism. I developed a research(ing) relationship with the classroom teacher, where we collaborated and worked together. The theory of the wake, which is grounded in antiblackness and Afro-pessimism, and the four theoretical concepts within, was engaged to inquire how these theoretical processes can be recognized when teaching and learning with young children. A thinking with theory methodology were engaged to bring about valuable questions and implications during the classroom research. A discussion of contributions related to theory, methodology, and pedagogy are described.
Principal discretion and the use of out-of-school suspension in public high schools
Authors:   , Harrell Seth
Published: April 2021

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to analyze school principal's perception and use of out-of-school suspension as a consequence to address student misbehavior. This study was conducted on current acting high school principals in the southeast region of a Midwestern state. Participants completed a survey that consisted of items related to principal decision making as well as the use of zero-tolerance policies to determine discipline outcomes. Survey items were designed to determine how out-of-school suspensions are used in relation to the use of principal discretion and zero-tolerance policies. Principals in this study were given the opportunity to participate in follow-up interviews where principals were asked more specific questions about their use of out-ofschool suspension as a form of student discipline. Study results found that principals felt the use of out-of-school suspension were an effective consequence to address student misbehavior. Principals felt they had the autonomy to use their discretion to determine the most appropriate consequence to address student misbehavior in their respective schools. Opinions were mixed on the use of zero-tolerance policies. A majority of surveyed participants felt that zero-tolerance policies were an effective method used to address student misbehavior. However, principals who were interviewed preferred to use their discretion over zero-tolerance policies when determining the most appropriate consequence because principals wanted to be able to consider all of the circumstances of a discipline situation. Principals concluded that out-of-school suspensions are necessary in-order to protect the learning environment for all students; however, there are inconsistencies in the use of such suspensions. These inconsistencies are present through the use of principal discretion and decision making, the use of zero-tolerance policies, the length of the suspension, and the unnecessary use of suspensions for minor discipline infractions.
Characteristics of the high school varsity mixed show choir
Authors:   , Kindle Christopher Scott
Published: April 2021

This descriptive study was designed to provide researchers and educators with baseline data about characteristics of show choirs and information regarding the role the show choir plays in the high school choral department. Seventy directors of varsity mixed show choirs across the nation responded to a researcher-constructed survey designed to examine the role, logistics, musical and pedagogical characteristics and potential benefits and drawbacks of these ensembles. Results indicated that the participants believed that the purpose of the show choir was to make sure that students are receiving a wellrounded choral experience by exposing them to different musical genres, while allowing for the inclusion of multiple disciplines like dance, band and theatre. Data indicated the considerable amounts of time and money expended on this ensemble. The results showed that the directors taught proper vocal technique and that the students were learning about the basics of singing even while being exposed to pop, rock and Broadway style music. Participants indicated that through the show choir, the students were learning more than just music. This includes life skills that they can use not only while in school but also once they graduate, such as how to be a part of a team and how to present themselves in front of an audience. The biggest drawbacks reported were time commitments for the director and ensemble. The findings of this study provide educational reasons in support of the role the show choir plays in the choral curriculum, while the logistical data could serve as a baseline against which teachers, administrators and school districts might compare their own programs with a national sample of responses.
Essays on return predictability and active management
Authors:   , Kothari Patrik
Published: April 2021

In this dissertation, I consider two topics in return predictability and performance evaluation in active management. In the first essay, I propose a production based asset pricing model with labor inputs. In this model, to either maintain the current size of the workforce (by replacing departing workers) or change the size of the workforce, firms advertise job openings and hire new workers each period. Changes in labor inputs are subject to stochastic adjustment costs coming from search-matching frictions in labor markets. The adjustment costs represent resources spent on hiring activities and increase convexly with the job openings rate (i.e., the ratio of the number of vacancies to the size of the workforce). The expected return for the rm is a ratio of marginal benefits to marginal costs. Accordingly, the model predicts a negative relation between the job openings rate and expected return in the subsequent period. Empirical tests con rm the model's prediction and show that the job openings rate is a strong negative predictor of returns. The job openings rate also outperforms 16 other popular forecasting variables. Forecasts obtained from the job openings rate also leads to large gains in returns for investors who consider it in making asset allocation decisions. In the second essay, I reexamine the relation between managerial activeness and mutual fund performance. Several recent studies argue that investors can use exante observable proxies of managerial activeness (e.g., active share, active weight, return gap, and R2) to predict net of fee risk adjusted performance of mutual fund managers. Using a sample 11 such managerial activeness proxies, first, I show that the predictive power of the activeness proxies is largely concentrated in a three year period from 1999 to 2001 and excluding this period, only two activeness proxies significantly predict net alpha. Second, none of the activeness proxies are significantly predictors in out-of-sample tests. Third, the characteristic-sorted portfolios formed using the activeness proxies have positive exposures to profitability and investment factors. Using the Fama and French (2015) five-factor model as the benchmark, net alpha for these portfolios reduces by about 80% on average.
The effect of the flexible modular schedule on student academic achievement, student behavior, and student development
Authors:   , Kroll Robert J. Jr.
Published: April 2021

The purpose of this case study was to examine the effect the flexible modular schedule had on student achievement, student behavior, and student development. This study contained three questions that evaluated the effect flexible modular scheduling had upon academic [standardized testing analysis] and student behavior [student suspension analysis] as well as the developmental impact [faculty interviews] the schedule had on students within a particular school. A mixed methods approach was used to conduct a case study that allowed an in-depth analysis of both the qualitative and quantitative data. Quantitative findings of significance provide answers to the research questions as well as qualitative themes such as inconsistent stakeholder buy-in, student access: opportunities and challenges, and developmental outcomes, which offer insight into the impact the flexible modular schedule has had on student development. This study sought to examine the necessity for educational leaders to consider the developmental needs of students ahead of the allocation of time when structuring the school day. Recommendations for practice are presented to both the school district and high school employing the flexible modular schedule.
A case study of implementing response to intervention in high school
Authors:   , McCarthy Andrew Dennis
Published: April 2021

Many secondary schools pride themselves on having a rigorous academic program for all students. These same schools are excited to share how their students have become more socially responsible after graduation. In fact, many schools provide both ideologies in their mission statements and plaster it throughout their buildings, websites, publications, and letterhead. But what secondary schools should be asking and answering is: how do their teams respond when students do not master the material? Schools that successfully provide student intervention and support student mastery at every level of content attainment should celebrate and promote this product of student growth. Studies, mostly in elementary schools, highlight that well-implemented response to intervention, or RTI, processes include the following: formation of intervention teams, development of a universal screening process, continual monitoring of students for progress, and use of evidence-based interventions. Previous studies on RTI in secondary school settings have shown some success with reading and math interventions, but various barriers to implementation also existed and were minimally discussed. Seeking to add to the growing body of RTI literature in a high school setting, this qualitative case study explored to what degree the essential elements of response to intervention, or RTI, were implemented in Aspen Time, one high school's uniquely designed, daily, 30-minute, student intervention period. Data collection included document review, focus groups, interviews and observations of Aspen Time. Analyses found four barriers to implementation (scheduling/structure, curriculum issues, fidelity, and staff capacity/professional development) and offered recommendations for high schools on RTI implementation.
Conservation biogeography of lotic fishes in the Missouri and Colorado River basins
Authors:   , Pierce Landon Lee
Published: April 2021

To improve our understanding of lotic fish ecology and improve conservation efforts, I 1) identified potentially ecologically important tributaries (PEITs) and evaluated their effects on fish assemble structure, 2) evaluated factors affecting spatial transferability of species distribution models (SDMs), and 3) evaluated the drivers of non-native fish establishment in the Missouri and Colorado River basins (MRB and CRB). The effects of PEIT likely vary among rivers as all Missouri River PEITs affected fish assemblage structure, but only half of upper Colorado River basin PEITs affected fish assemblage structure. Species distribution models transferred from the MRB to the CRB for 15 of 25 species, but transferability was not predictable based on species characteristics, re-enforcing the hypothesis that transferability is species-and contextspecific. Support for Human Activity, Biotic Resistance and Biotic Acceptance hypotheses as the drivers of non-native fish establishment varied by family, but these hypotheses rarely explained significant variability in the probability of non-native Salmonidae, Catostomidae, and Cyprinidae occurrence. These results may suggest that other factors (e.g., natural factors) drive non-native species distributions at the spatial (i.e., grain-stream segment; extents-physiographic divisions, and MRB and CRB combined) and taxonomic (i.e., family) scales considered in this study. This study aids conservations efforts by providing an efficient approach for identifying ecologically important tributaries and improving predictions of non-native species establishment.
Examining the sources of self-efficacy among instrumental music teachers
Authors:   , Regier Bradley James
Published: April 2021

This dissertation comprises three projects that were designed to investigate the extent that mastery experiences, verbal persuasions, vicarious experiences, and physiological state contribute to instrumental music teachers' self-efficacy. The first investigation was a review of the literature about self-efficacy and its sources among general education teachers, music teachers, and preservice teachers. The second investigation was a survey study of how instrumental teachers' self-efficacy for teaching strategies is influenced by its four sources. Results indicated concert band directors' self-efficacy related the most with mastery experiences, followed by verbal persuasions, physiological state, and vicarious experiences, respectively. Further investigation indicated levels of self-efficacy related with years of experience and self-perceptions of effective teaching. The third investigation was a case study of preservice instrumental teachers' self-efficacy and concerns. Participants' beliefs were most impacted by their familiarity with a setting and perceived success of previous pedagogical experiences. Results from these three projects indicated that instrumental music teachers' self-efficacy (a) is most influenced by the relative success of previous teaching experiences, (b) relates to effective teaching behaviors, and (c) improves with experience and familiarity in a setting.
The ability of an extinguished CS and a CS given conditioned inhibition training to pass tests for inhibition
Authors:   , Richardson Rachel Anne
Published: April 2021

Conditioned inhibition (CI) is a classical conditioning procedure that results in a conditioned stimulus (CS) that predicts the absence of an unconditioned stimulus (US). A procedure known as Pavlovian conditioned inhibition training is the most common procedure for producing CI. In this procedure, a nontarget CS (CS A) is paired with the US and then CS A is presented with the target CS (CS X) without the US. Therefore, AUS trials and AX-noUS trials are given. CS X acquires inhibitory properties during these AX trials. Research has shown that extinction also produces CI. Extinction occurs when a CS (CS X) is paired with the US during conditioning and then this CS is presented alone without the US. The Rescorla-Wagner model predicts that the two CSs during AX-noUS trials will compete for learning and this should lead to slow and limited learning about those cues (a loss of excitation for CS A and inhibition acquired for CS X) due to this competition. During extinction trials, CS X does not compete for learning, so the subject should learn rapidly about the CS. The following experiments found that extinction produced less inhibition than Pavlovian conditioned inhibition training.
Great expectations : a qualitative study of selection, school preparation, and implementation of a professional development program
Authors:   , Sheffield Angela Michelle Crawford
Published: April 2021

This study explored the experiences surrounding the selection, preparations, and implementation of a professional development program, Great Expectations, at two schools that adopted the program at different times in their existence. Twelve participants took part in this basic qualitative study which utilized three forms of data collection: (a) interviews, (b) observations, and (c) document and video clip analysis. The researcher analyzed data as it was collected. Upon completion of the data collection, the researcher used constant comparative, inductive analysis, which resulted in the emergence of themes and subthemes. The study's findings revealed differences at the two schools, as well as some similar experiences. Although neither school's participants had a say in the decision-making process, the new school had positive wordings while the existing school voiced negative experiences. The preparations for implementation revealed an extensive time commitment in training and classroom preparation at both schools with some differences in the emotional aspects. Again, the experiences were more positive at the new school. The practices to maintain fidelity of implementation revealed several similarities, with differences in human resources provided. The findings indicate the need for a plan when implementing a school-wide professional development program. The plan should include more stakeholder voices at the decision-making table, more time and resources during contract time for preparation, and continued support during the practice of implementation.
Understanding the impact of MSHSAA by-law 3.15.3 on participation in Missouri high school athletics from 2008-2016
Authors:   , Vokolek Casey Lewis
Published: April 2021

This quantitative policy analysis seeks to understand the potential impact of MSHSAA By-Law, 3.15.3, the contact day policy, on sport participation in Missouri high school athletics. This policy increased the number of practices Missouri coaches could have with their athletes in the 07 from 14 to 25 days. There was a concern from MSHSAA school leaders and coaches that this policy could impact single and multi-sport participation. This study seeks to determine if a relationship can be identified with the implementation of the policy and changes in participation. ... This quantitative policy analysis revealed a significant difference in single sport and multiple sport participation for the years prior to and following the implementation of MSHSAA By-Law 3.15.3. Research question two revealed that there has not been a significant change in the overall number of single sport and multi-sport participants. Research questions three and five revealed that urban school participation has significantly decreased following the implementation of the By-Law. Research questions four and six revealed that students that attend schools that offer ten or less sports have also seen a decrease in single and multi-sport participation. Finally, research question number seven revealed that multi-sport participation has decreased significantly in schools that do not offer 11-man football and has increased in schools that do offer 11-man football.
Accessibility of public services : city government institutions and service spatial distribution
Authors:   , Angello Dana Katherine
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] Public services are central to the purpose of city government, and scholars have found that government institutions affect policy and budgetary decisions. I use the locations of libraries, parks, and fire stations in 15 U.S. cities to better understand whether public services are equitable and the moderating effect of institutions. Though the literature leads to hypotheses predicting that cities will place their public service facilities nearer to white, higher income neighborhoods, I find that this is not true for every city. In some cities, public facilities are closer to lower income neighborhoods with a high percentage of racial and ethnic minorities. I test whether such variation is due to cities' differences in institutional arrangements-city council electoral institutions and the administrative powers of a city manager and a mayor-and do not find a moderating effect. Additionally, in a case study of Seattle, I compare policy priorities and parks placements under an at-large city council system and a mixed system. I find some difference in the salient issues as well as the rhetoric of council members, while some priorities remain constant. Not enough time has passed to adequately compare the two systems, especially when using quantitative data to compare city park placement. More study is needed to better understand the effects of city government institutions on policy and representation.
Reference analysis of non-regular models and nonparametric Bayes modeling of large data
Authors:   , Jha Chetkar
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] Bayesian analysis is a principled approach, which makes inference about the parameter, by combining the information gained from the data and the prior belief about the parameter. There's no convergence on the choice of priors, and often different motivations for prior lead to different areas of study in Bayesian statistics. This work is motivated by two such choices, namely: reference priors and nonparametric priors. Reference priors arise out of the need to specify priors in a non-subjective manner, i.e. objective manner. Reference priors maximize the amount of information gained from the data about the parameter, in information theoretical sense. The appeal of reference priors lies in the fact that it has nice frequentist properties even for small sample size and often avoids marginalization paradoxes in Bayesian analysis. However, reference prior algorithms are typically available when the posterior is asymptotically normal and Fisher's information matrix is well-defined. In statistical parlance, such models are called regular case or regular model. Recently, Berger et al. (2009) [1] proposed a general expression of reference prior for single continuous parameter model, which is applicable for both regular and non-regular case. Motivated by Berger et al. (2009) [1], we explore reference prior methodology for a general model. Specifically, we derive expression of reference prior for single continuous parameter truncated exponential family and a general expression of conditional reference prior for multi group continuous parameter model. Furthermore, we demonstrate the usefulness of our work by deriving reference priors for models which have no known existing reference priors. We also extend Datta and Ghosh (1996) [2]'s invariance result for reference prior of regular model to general model. Nonparametric priors arise out of the need to specify priors over a large support.
Development and initial validation of the Latinx well-being scale
Authors:   , Rojas Perez Oscar Fernando
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] In 2000, the conceptualization and operationalization of psychological well-being shifted to a science of positive subjective experiences to improve quality of life. Although this new model was a more positive way of conceptualizing well-being compared to prior methods, this new approach fell short because it was based on non-Latinx Whites and excluded other racial and ethnic groups (i.e. Latinxs). To better assess the well-being of Latinxs, I developed the Latinx Well-being Scale (LWBS), a culturally grounded, strength-based, and holistic measure based on the lived experiences of Latinxs in the United States. With a total of 239 Latinxs primarily from the West Coast, the results of an exploratory factors analysis (EFA) suggested a 55-item, 4-factor solution: (a) Familial Well-being, (b) Spiritual Well-being, (c) Community Well-being, and (d) Physical well-being. The LWBS showed good internal consistency along with evidence to support convergent, discriminant, and construct validity. Directions for future use of the scale in Latinx psychology research and practice are provided.
Oh the places you could go : the perceived impact of early career exposure
Authors:   , Hagston Stacy Jean
Published: April 2021

This study explored the perceived impact of a college and career readiness program, Missouri Connections, on decisions made during high school. The research questions were as follows: 1. What perceived impact, if any, has the Missouri Connections program had on the self-efficacy, outcome expectations, and goals of current high school students? 2. What perceived impact, if any, did the Missouri Connections program have on planning, exploring, and deciding on a career of current high school students who went through the program? Thirty-five high school seniors took part in this study, which utilized a survey consisting of both open and Likert type questions. The researcher analyzed the data using open coding and frequencies. The study's findings revealed that, overall, the program had little to no impact on self-efficacy, outcome expectations, and goals. The findings also indicated little to no impact on planning, exploring, and deciding when it came to college and career plans. The findings indicated that changes should be considered to the current career development program.
Three essays on bayesian analysis of nonlinear DSGE models
Authors:   , Noh Sanha
Published: April 2021

The 2008 financial crisis has highlighted the importance of nonlinear features of our economy including risks, uncertainty shocks, rare disasters, structural changes, zero-lower bound, and occasionally binding constraints. Macroeconomists have tried to build nonlinear models to analyze these interesting features and take the models to the data. Dynamic Stochastic General Equilibrium (DSGE) model that essentially takes into account dynamic optimal decision making of households, firms, and government is one of the useful tools to deal with these issues. In the model, there are various random shocks causing the macroeconomic variables such as GDP, consumption, and investment to fluctuate over time. Above all things, the nonlinear approximation of the model allows us to capture the impact of risk on decision making. The focus of this dissertation is to provide a novel Bayesian estimation procedure for the estimation of nonlinear DSGE model and apply the proposed methodologies to analyze some nonlinear issues related to DSGE models. ... In the third chapter, I investigate a real business cycle (RBC) model for a small open economy by estimating the model solved up to second order. The higher order approximation more closely approximates the original model than the linear approximation. In this study, I evaluate the likelihood of the nonlinear model using the Gaussian mixture a lter (GMF) and employ the GMF within the MCMC algorithm. From the estimation results of the quadratic approximation, I obtain the following implications for a small open economy: First, the quadratic RBC model with financial frictions does a good job at identifying the parameters of the nonstationary productivity shock process. Second, the observed data favor the quadratic benchmark RBC and financial-friction models over the linear models. Third, the quadratic RBC model with financial frictions does a better job at capturing serial correlations of the observed data than the linear model with financial frictions. Fourth, contrary to the linear model with financial frictions, a nonstationary productivity shock in the quadratic model plays an important role in explaining Argentine economic fluctuations.