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Investigating Factors that Affect Faculty Attitudes towards Participation in Open Access Institutional Repositories (open access)

Investigating Factors that Affect Faculty Attitudes towards Participation in Open Access Institutional Repositories

Open access institutional repositories (OA IRs) are electronic systems that capture, preserve, and provide access to the scholarly digital work of an institution. As a new channel of scholarly communications IRs offer faculty a new way to disseminate their work to a wider audience, which in turn can increase the visibility to their work and impact factors, and at the same time increase institutions prestige and value. However, despite the increased popularity of IRs in numbers, research shows that IRs remain thinly populated in large part due to faculty reluctance to participate. There have been studies on the topic of open access repositories with the focus on external factors (social or technological context) that affect faculty attitudes towards participation in IRs, and there is a lack of understanding of the internal factors and the psychology of the reluctance. The goal of this mix method study was to identify the overall factors that affect faculty attitudes towards participation in IRs and examine the extent to which these factors influenced faculty willingness to participate in IRs. First, from literature review and the Model of Factors Affecting Faculty Self-Archiving this study identified eleven factors that influenced faculty members' intention to participate in OA …
Date: December 2017
Creator: Tmava, Ahmet Meti
System: The UNT Digital Library
Maximal Proposition, Environmental Melodrama, and the Rhetoric of Local Movements: A Study of The Anti-Fracking Movement in Denton, Texas (open access)

Maximal Proposition, Environmental Melodrama, and the Rhetoric of Local Movements: A Study of The Anti-Fracking Movement in Denton, Texas

The environmental problems associated with the boom in hydraulic fracturing or "fracking," such as anthropogenic earthquakes and groundwater contamination, have motivated some citizens living in affected areas such as Denton, Texas to form movements with the goal of imposing greater regulation on the industry. As responses to an environmental threat that is localized and yet mobile, these anti-fracking movements must construct rhetorical appeals with complicated relationships to place. In this thesis, I examine the anti-fracking movement in Denton, Texas in a series of three rhetorical analyses. In the first, I compared fracking bans used by Frack Free Denton and State College, Pennsylvania to distinguish the argumentative claims that are dependent on the politics of place, and affect strategies localities must use in resisting natural gas extraction. In the second, I compare campaign strategies that use local identity as a way of invoking legitimacy, which reinforces narrative frameworks of environmental risk. In the third, I conduct and analyze interviews with anti-fracking leaders who described the narrative of their movement, which highlighted tensions in the rhetorical construction of a movement as local. Altogether, this thesis traces the rhetorical conception of place across the rhetoric of the anti-fracking movement in Denton, Texas, while …
Date: December 2017
Creator: Hensley, Colton Dwayne
System: The UNT Digital Library
Artscapes: Community Perceptions of City Beautification through Murals in Denton, Texas (open access)

Artscapes: Community Perceptions of City Beautification through Murals in Denton, Texas

Keep Denton Beautiful (KDB) is inspired by Keep America Beautiful's model of community engagement to create a clean, beautiful, and vibrant city. The community mural initiative, Artscapes, aims to enliven public spaces, abate graffiti, and inspire community members to keep Denton, Texas, clean and beautiful. The goals of this research project are to understand the impact of Artscapes initiative, community perceptions of public art, and find ways KDB can better align future mural projects with the needs and desires of community members. By talking to artists that have worked with KDB, members of the mural art committee, and community members from the neighborhoods that have existing murals, this research provides input from these three populations to continue creating public art for the Denton community. I discuss the context of my work through Lefebvre's concept of "Right to the City," Rafael Schacter's opposition between sanctioned and non-sanctioned murals, Bourdieu's concept of symbolic and social capital, and David Harvey's work on neoliberalism and the entrepreneurial city.
Date: December 2017
Creator: Robertson, Lindsey
System: The UNT Digital Library
Attention and Information Processing Variables in Hypothetically Psychosis-Prone College Students (open access)

Attention and Information Processing Variables in Hypothetically Psychosis-Prone College Students

Considering the explanations of schizophrenia that presume schizophrenia spectrum disorders (e.g., schizotypal personality disorder, schizoaffective disorder, etc.) to be genetically related to schizophrenia, the purpose of this study was to investigate the attention and information processing abilities of individuals who have been identified as schizotypal or psychosis-prone (i.e., schizophrenia spectrum functioning in individuals who do not have schizophrenia). Research indicates that persons identified as psychosis-prone may show attention and information processing deficits similar to individuals with schizophrenia. The identification and description of individuals who later decompensate into schizophrenia would advance the understanding of schizophrenia and its causes. The Chapman's PER-MAG scale (Perceptual Aberration-Magical Ideation) was used to identify 35 hypothetically psychosis-prone college students (schizotypy group) and 42 normal college students (nonschizotypy group) out of the 806 volunteer subjects. Their attention and information processing abilities were measured by COGLAB (a multiparadigmatic cognitive test battery that represents a continuum of cognitive functions, from preattentional to attentional, to conceptual). Their social adjustment was measured by the Premorbid Adjustment Scale (PAS). The hypotheses of the study were that the hypothetically psychosis-prone subjects would perform poorer than controls on COGLAB measures and that COGLAB measures of a more molar nature would better predict social adjustment …
Date: December 1995
Creator: Ottesen, James McBride
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Relationship between Self-Reported Bulimic Behavior and Cardiovascular Reactivity to a Weight Stressor (open access)

The Relationship between Self-Reported Bulimic Behavior and Cardiovascular Reactivity to a Weight Stressor

This investigation sought to identify anxiety responses to weight measurement, assessed by verbal report and cardiovascular reactivity CCR3 (systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, heart rate), which might differentiate females with either high or low self-reported bulimic behavior. Secondar i ly,, the study attempted to examine specific autonomic nervous system (ANS) arousal patterns of each group over time. The Bulimia Test (BULIT), Body Dissatisfaction Scale (BD), and a demographic questionnaire were administered to 105 undergraduate females at The University of North Texas. Based on BULIT scores, females were divided into high or low bulimic behavior groups. Of the 105 females screened, forty participated in the experiment which consisted of four phases: relaxation, anticipation of weight measurement, weight measurement, and recovery. Subjects had no prior knowledge of the weight stressor until presentation during the experiment. Results showed that subjects' notion of ideal weight was substantially lower than measured weight. During weight measurement, all subjects reported increased anxiety although the high group reported significantly more anxiety. Contrary to prediction, no significant group differences in CR were found when repeated measures multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was performed. Orthogonal polynomial trend analysis was done with pooled groups, resulting in significant within-subject trends for …
Date: August 1993
Creator: Marcontell, Deborah K. (Deborah Kay)
System: The UNT Digital Library
Effects of Meal Size and Type, and Level of Physical Activity on Perceived Masculinity, Femininity, Likability and Attractiveness (open access)

Effects of Meal Size and Type, and Level of Physical Activity on Perceived Masculinity, Femininity, Likability and Attractiveness

Previous research indicates that women are judged on the amount of food eaten and that both men and women are judged on the type of food eaten. This study is an attempt to determine whether meal size or type predominantly accounts for these findings on the variables of masculinity, femininity, attractiveness, thinness, fitness, and likability. Physical activity was also included to determine its effect on these variable. Subjects used were 313 undergraduate students. Results indicate that meal type is more influential than meal size and that physical activity significantly influences judgements of others. The results are discussed in terms of future research and relatedness to socio-cultural theories of eating disorders.
Date: December 1994
Creator: Hill, Christie D.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Evaluation of a Constructed Wetland to Reduce Toxicity from Diazinon at the Pecan Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant, Denton, TX (open access)

Evaluation of a Constructed Wetland to Reduce Toxicity from Diazinon at the Pecan Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant, Denton, TX

The City of Denton Pecan Creek Wastewater Treatment Facility has periodically failed effluent toxicity testing. A Toxicity Identification Evaluation has determined that Diazinon in the effluent is contributing to the observed toxicity. Chlorpyrifos is also implicated as a factor. The City of Denton constructed a half acre experimental wetland to remove Diazinon related toxicity. Results from spiking and microcosm experiments indicate that the wetland can reduce the Diazinon.
Date: May 1996
Creator: Baerenklau, Amy L. (Amy Lyn)
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Comparison of Predicted and Actual Trophic Status of Lake Ray Roberts, Texas Based on Chlorophyll A (open access)

A Comparison of Predicted and Actual Trophic Status of Lake Ray Roberts, Texas Based on Chlorophyll A

Two years before impoundment, the trophic status of Lake Ray Roberts was predicted by applying the total phosphorus input into the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) eutrophication model. Predicted mean summer epilimnetic (MSE) chlorophyll a of Elm Fork arm, Isle duBois arm and Main Body were in the eutrophic category of the OECD model. Observed MSE chlorophyll a two years after impoundment of Elm Fork arm, Isle duBois and Main Body had not reached their predicted means and were at the mesotrophic-eutrophic boundary of the OECD model. Six years after impoundment, observed MSE chlorophyll a for Main Body, was closer to its predicted mean and in the eutrophic category of the OECD model. Six years after impoundment, Elm Fork arm was the most productive area of Lake Ray Roberts. Observed means of chlorophyll a, total phosphates, suspended solids and turbidity were often highest in the Elm Fork arm. Wastewater effluent from Gainesville and Valley View, TX, had an impact on productivity in Elm Fork arm.
Date: May 1999
Creator: Lytle, Lili Lisa
System: The UNT Digital Library
Differences in Student and Faculty Attitudes toward Physical Activity (open access)

Differences in Student and Faculty Attitudes toward Physical Activity

The problem was to identify the differences in attitudes toward physical activity of students and faculty within a health, physical education, and recreation professional preparation program.
Date: June 1973
Creator: Judkins, Cleetis Wilburn
System: The UNT Digital Library
Examining the Relationship between Variability in Acquisition and Variability in Extinction (open access)

Examining the Relationship between Variability in Acquisition and Variability in Extinction

Using the "revealed operant" technique, variability during acquisition and extinction was examined with measures of response rate and a detailed analysis of response topography. During acquisition, subjects learned to emit four response patterns. A continuous schedule of reinforcement (CRF) for 100 repetitions was used for each pattern and a 30 min extinction phase immediately followed. One group of subjects learned the response patterns via a "trial-and-error" method. This resulted in a wide range of variability during acquisition and extinction. Only one subject emitted a substantial amount of resurgent behavior. A second group of subjects was given instructions on what keys to press to earn reinforcers. This group had less variability in acquisition and extinction and resurgent responding was prevalent.
Date: December 1997
Creator: Neff, Bryon (Bryon R.)
System: The UNT Digital Library
AIDS Preventative Behavior Among Taiwanese University Students (open access)

AIDS Preventative Behavior Among Taiwanese University Students

This study used the Health Belief Model to examine the predictors of AIDS preventive behavior. The independent variables were the variables of individual perception, modifying factors (psychological variables), and likelihood variables. The respondents, the Taiwanese students of the University of North Texas, were influenced both by Chinese sexuality and Western values in their AIDS-risk behavior. The results revealed that 90% of the respondents were misinformed on the availability of AIDS vaccine. In addition, a majority of the students were either abstaining from sex or practicing monogamy. Using Pearson's correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis, this study found that the psychological variables rather than cognitive variables significantly influenced the respondents' AIDS preventive behavior. Finally, suggestions were made for future research on AIDS, and for AIDS preventive behavior campaigns.
Date: May 1997
Creator: Wang, Ya-Chien
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Comparison of Adult Children of Alcoholic Families with Adult Children from Non-Alcoholic Families: a Replication (open access)

A Comparison of Adult Children of Alcoholic Families with Adult Children from Non-Alcoholic Families: a Replication

The purpose of this study was to re-examine the issue of whether adult children of alcoholics experience more depression, anxiety, and lower self-esteem than do children of non-alcoholic families. This study is a replication of the study of David Dodd, entitled A Comparison of Adult Children of Alcoholic Families with Adult Children from Non-Alcoholic Families. 1990. The measures used in this study were as follows: Children of Alcoholics Screening Test, the Beck Depression Inventory, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, the Coopersmith Adult Self-Esteem Inventory, and a questionnaire developed by this writer designed to obtain family history regarding not only alcoholism, but other issues of family dysfunctionality as well. The subjects for this study were 231 students enrolled in the counselor education program at this university, all aged 19 or older. Of the 230 subjects, 31 were male and 199 were female. Eleven males identified themselves as children of alcoholics, as measured by the Children of Alcoholics Screening Test, and 60 females identified themselves as children of alcoholics. Thus, a total of 71 subjects in this study were identified as children of alcoholics. T-tests were conducted to see whether any differences existed between the male and female groups. No significant differences were …
Date: August 1996
Creator: Dooley, Sandra Y.
System: The UNT Digital Library
An Experimental Investigation on the Effects of Learning Style and Presentation Methods on Knowledge Acquisition in a University Classroom Environment (open access)

An Experimental Investigation on the Effects of Learning Style and Presentation Methods on Knowledge Acquisition in a University Classroom Environment

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of four learning styles (accommodator, assimilator, converger, and diverger) and two different presentation methods (traditional and computer-based) on knowledge acquisition in a university classroom.
Date: December 1997
Creator: Ryu, Youngtae
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Effects of Child-Centered Play Therapy Training on Trainees (open access)

The Effects of Child-Centered Play Therapy Training on Trainees

This study was designed to determine the effects of child-centered play therapy as a play therapy training model for beginning play therapy students. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of child-centered play therapy training on play therapy trainees in (a) improving positive attitudes and beliefs toward children; (b) improving knowledge of child-centered play therapy; (c) improving confidence in applying child-centered play therapy skills; (d) reducing dominance tendencies in trainees' personality as measured by the California Psychological Inventory; and (e) increasing tolerance levels in trainees' personality as measured by the CPI. The experimental group, consisting of 37 counseling graduate students with a specialty in child counseling, received 45 clock hours of introduction to play therapy graduate course training at the University of North Texas, Denton. The control group, consisting of 29 counseling graduate students with a specialty in child counseling, received other counseling graduate courses training but no play therapy training at the time of their participation in this study at the University of North Texas. Both experimental and control group students completed the pretest and the posttest on the Play Therapy Attitude Knowledge Skills Survey and the California Psychological Inventory at the beginning and the end …
Date: December 1996
Creator: Kao, Shu-Chen
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Comparison of Points Versus Sounds as Reinforces in Human Operant Research (open access)

A Comparison of Points Versus Sounds as Reinforces in Human Operant Research

Research shows that human operant behavior typically differs from non-human operant behavior on schedules of reinforcement. These differences in performance may be related to differences between the experimental preparations used to study human and non-human operant behavior. One such difference is the type of reinforcer used. This experiment analyzed the differential effects of points alone, points backed up by money, and sounds on schedule performance of human subjects. Results show that sounds generated moderate rates of responding, capable of change in either direction. When points backed up with money were the reinforcers, however, high rates of behavior were generated, disrupting the previously established baseline performance. This suggests that while points may be effective in generating high rates of behavior, they may be ineffective in producing sensitive baselines needed to study human operant behavior on schedules of reinforcement.
Date: August 1999
Creator: Rouse, Susan L.
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Study of the Relationships among Relational Maintenance Strategy Usage, Communicator Style and Romantic Relational Satisfaction (open access)

A Study of the Relationships among Relational Maintenance Strategy Usage, Communicator Style and Romantic Relational Satisfaction

This thesis examined student-participants' self-reported use of romantic relational maintenance strategies and their partners' reports of relational satisfaction. Additionally, individuals outside the romantic relationship reported on student-participants' general communicator style. The research proposed that general style reports would be predictive of relational maintenance strategy usage and of romantic partners' relational satisfaction. The study found that general style behaviors may not be indicative of relational maintenance strategy usage or romantic partners' relational satisfaction. Tests of sex differences revealed that females' expression of various relational maintenance strategies and style behaviors are associated with male partners' relational satisfaction; however, no results were obtained indicating specific behaviors expressed by males result in female partners' relational satisfaction.
Date: August 1996
Creator: Hardin, Charla (Charla LeeAnn)
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Effects of Parental Divorce and Family Conflict on Young Adults Females' Perceptions of Social Support and Adjustment (open access)

The Effects of Parental Divorce and Family Conflict on Young Adults Females' Perceptions of Social Support and Adjustment

The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of parental divorce and family conflict during adolescence on young adult females' social support and psychological adjustment. The three areas explored were perceptions of relationship satisfaction and closeness, sources and amount of social support and adjustment. One hundred and forty-one female undergraduates, 53% from families in which their parents are still married and 47% from families in which a parental divorce occurred during adolescence, completed the following measures: the Dyadic Adjustment Scale (Spanier, 1976), the Social Provisions Scale-Source Specific (Cutrona, 1989), the Inventory of Common Problems (Hoffman & Weiss, 1986), the Family Environment Scale (Moos & Moos, 1981), and the Sibling Relationship Questionnaire (Furman & Buhrmester, 1985).
Date: May 1998
Creator: Quinn, M. Theresa
System: The UNT Digital Library
Library CD-ROM LAN Performance and Patron Use: a Computer Simulation Model (open access)

Library CD-ROM LAN Performance and Patron Use: a Computer Simulation Model

In this study, a computer simulation model for library CD-ROM LAN systems was created. Using this model, the system optimization problems were examined. The simulation model imitated the process of the actual decision variables changing their values and generated the corresponding results. Under a certain system environment, if the values of decision variables are changing, the system performances are getting changed also. This study investigated these relationships with the created model. The system users' interarrival time, service time, and other relevant data were collected on randomly selected days in a university library. For data collection, both of the observation and the system automatic metering software were used. According to the collected data, a discrete events simulation model was created with GPSS/H. The simulation model was proven valid and accurate by a pilot test and by the calculation with queuing theory. Statistical tests were used for data comparison and analysis. In addition, animation technique was used to show the simulation process by using Proof Animation. By this technique, the simulation process was monitored on the screen.
Date: May 1996
Creator: Xia, Hong
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Effects of Computer Performance Assessment on Student Scores in a Computer Applications Course (open access)

The Effects of Computer Performance Assessment on Student Scores in a Computer Applications Course

The goal of this study was to determine if performance-based tests should be routinely administered to students in computer application courses. The purpose was to determine the most appropriate mode of testing for individuals taking a computer applications course. The study is divided into areas of assessment, personality traits, and computer attitudes.
Date: July 1994
Creator: Casey, Sue Hartness
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Effects of Career Group Counseling on the Self-Concept of At-Risk High School Students as Measured by the Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale (open access)

The Effects of Career Group Counseling on the Self-Concept of At-Risk High School Students as Measured by the Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of career group counseling in raising the self-concept of at-risk high school students. The following subgroups were represented in the sample: male and female students, white and non-white ethnic groups, and students from sophomore, junior, and senior classifications. Two groups of students in the Lewisville Independent School District meeting the criteria for at-risk as defined by House Bill 1010 were administered a pretest and posttest using the Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale. The experimental group was from the Lewisville Learning Center. The control group was students enrolled in the Coordinated Vocational Academic Education (CVAE) classes at Lewisville High School. A treatment sample of 25 students received career group counseling. A nontreatment sample of 25 students did not receive any group counseling. The t-test for independent samples was used to analyze the data. The pretests for the experimental and control groups showed no significant difference at the .05 level. The treatment sample received 30 hours of group counseling in the Fall semester of 1994. At the end of 30 hours of counseling a posttest was administered to the treatment sample and to the control sample. The t-test for independent samples was used …
Date: August 1995
Creator: Szydlik, Linda (Linda L.)
System: The UNT Digital Library
Life-Style Themes of Women Who Emerge as Leaders in Small Group Settings (open access)

Life-Style Themes of Women Who Emerge as Leaders in Small Group Settings

This study investigated the effects of personality characteristics on emergent leadership in small group settings. Two instruments were used to assess personality factors: The BASIS-A and the California Personality Inventory (CPI). A sociometric tool was developed to elicit leader ranking of female group members. The BASIS-A, was used to test for Taking Charge and Wanting Recognition lifestyles in women who emerged as leaders. The CPI was used to assess female emergent leaders for Dominance and Leadership Potential. The two instruments and a sociometric form were distributed to 115 female graduate counselor-in-training students the last week of their group counseling experience. This survey resulted in 55 respondents (N=55) from eleven discussion groups. It was expected that women who had the highest averaged leader rank would demonstrate higher test scores in Dominance, Leadership Potential, Taking Charge, and Wanting Recognition than women who received a lower averaged leader rank. It was also thought that these four test factors would be highly related. If so, a case would be made to use the BASIS-A as an emergent leader assessment tool because it is consistently based in one psychological theory. No significant effect was found between the highest leader rank and three of the test …
Date: May 1996
Creator: Gray, Virginia C.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Association between Attitudes toward Computers and Understanding of Ethical Issues Affecting Their Use (open access)

The Association between Attitudes toward Computers and Understanding of Ethical Issues Affecting Their Use

This study examines the association between the attitudes of students toward computers and their knowledge of the ethical uses of computers. The focus for this research was undergraduate students in the Colleges of Arts and Sciences (Department of Computer Science), Business and Education at the University of North Texas in Denton, Texas.
Date: May 1992
Creator: Gottleber, Timothy Theodore
System: The UNT Digital Library
Primary Productivity and Nutrient Relationships in Garza-Little Elm Reservoir (open access)

Primary Productivity and Nutrient Relationships in Garza-Little Elm Reservoir

A large, multi-basin, reservoir (Garza-Little Elm Reservoir) in north central Texas was studied to determine the relative effects of various parameters on primary productivity. The basins were impounded several years apart,thus allowing the influence of age on water chemistry and biota to be considered. Another principal influence on water quality was secondary sewage effluent that entered one basin from a nearby source.
Date: May 1973
Creator: Smith, Jerry Allen
System: The UNT Digital Library
Graduate Student Opinion of Most Important Attributes in Effective Teaching (open access)

Graduate Student Opinion of Most Important Attributes in Effective Teaching

Graduate students in the College of Education at the University of North Texas, Denton rated 57 teacher attributes on their relative importance in effective teaching. The data was analyzed across six demographic variables of department, sex, degree, nationality, teaching experience, and previous graduate school, using mean scores, one-way ANOVA, and t-tests for two independent samples.
Date: May 1994
Creator: Onyegam, Emmanuel I. (Emmanuel Ikechi)
System: The UNT Digital Library