Institutionalized versus non-institutionalized mildly retarded populations: determination and comparison, based on Rotter's personal control theory, and a test of interpersonal distance (open access)

Institutionalized versus non-institutionalized mildly retarded populations: determination and comparison, based on Rotter's personal control theory, and a test of interpersonal distance

The problem with which this study was concerned was that of evaluating and comparing of locus of control scores and interpersonal distance among the institutionalized and non-institutionalized mildly retarded populations. The hypothetical assumptions specifically stated that the institutionalized retardates will be more externally oriented, will show a greater interpersonal distance towards stimuli with no specific expectancies. In view of the findings of the study, the following recommendations are offered: 1. Determination and evaluation of locus of control in retardates may be a useful technique in assessing their personality and understanding their psychological needs. Several investigators have been attempted with neurotics and subjects with character disorders, but none is reported with retarded populations. Such information may contribute to planning and programming for this particular group. 2. Determination of the retardates' interpersonal space may be an important approach in assessing their personality structure. Such studies have been conducted with the emotionally disturbed children, schizophrenics and normal subjects; however, none has been conducted with retardates. 3. The instruments used for this study have been designed for and standardized on samples of normal populations. To achieve more accurate results, these instruments should be designed for and standardized on a sample consisting of retarded subjects. …
Date: May 1976
Creator: Moazami, Manoutchehr
System: The UNT Digital Library
Effect of Feedback Discrepancy upon University Faculty (open access)

Effect of Feedback Discrepancy upon University Faculty

The problem this investigation considered was the effect of student evaluation feedback upon subsequent classroom behavior and attitudes of university faculty. The results of analysis of the data revealed that neither the amount of feedback, nor the time of semester the feedback was given produced any significant change in the teachers' self-evaluation. The discrepancies between students' evaluations and teacher's self-evaluation which were present also had no effect upon the teacher attitudes or classroom behaviors. Other variables that were without effect upon the teacher attitudes were number of years of teaching experience of the teacher, elective versus required course offerings, level of course, and academic department. These results refute much of the findings in current literature concerning the effects of various external consequences upon the attitudes of both teachers and students. However, the associated procedural difficulties require further explanation of the results. A possible explanation for the lack of significant results is detailed in the conclusion section. The reasons include procedural difficulties associated with external considerations which could not be controlled through experimentation; however, these processes have a large effect upon the final results.
Date: May 1979
Creator: Green, Michael J.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Effects of Orders of Presentation and Anchors on the Ratings of Perceived Exertion (open access)

The Effects of Orders of Presentation and Anchors on the Ratings of Perceived Exertion

The problem investigated was to compare the effects of orders of presentation and anchors on the ratings of perceived exertion obtained during bicycle ergometry. Based on the statistical analysis of the data, the following findings were apparent: 1. It was found that there were no significant differences in mean scores of perceived exertion obtained among the orders of presentation, ascending, descending, and random. 2. It was found that the light anchor mean score was significantly greater than those of the heavy or identical anchor. 3. It was found that there were significant differences among the ratings of perceived exertion that may be attributed to changes in work loads. 4. It was found that there were significant differences among the mean scores of ratings of perceived exertion that may be attributed to the interaction of the main effects. As a result of the findings, the following conclusions were deemed appropriate within the limitations of the study: 1. Ratings of perceived exertion in ascending and random order increased proportionately in value as the work load increases. 2. Contrast effects are present in ratings of perceived exertion obtained during bicycle ergometry. 3. The majority of previous findings agree with the present research with …
Date: May 1976
Creator: Peters, Albert L.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Application of Principles of Generative Phonology to the Teaching of Reading to Students of English as a Second Language (open access)

The Application of Principles of Generative Phonology to the Teaching of Reading to Students of English as a Second Language

This dissertation reports research into the problem of how to teach mastery of the English writing system (MEWS) to students of English as a second language (ESL). The problem involves the relatedness of English orthography and phonology. The research had two purposes. First was development of classroom instructional materials for improving reading proficiency in ESL students by application of generative phonological principles. Second was use of the instructional materials in a pilot study of fifty-three ESL college freshmen. A major finding was that subjects' reading proficiency was far below that of native speakers at the college level. Another was that the subjects had more difficulty with English vowels than with consonants. The subjects' scores on nonsense-word tests correlated significantly with five other criteria, including measures of ability to use ESL. A uniform disparity between ESL-student and native-speaker scores on tests of nonsense words was identified. Native-speakers generally had perfect scores, and ESL students had low scores. A chief implication is the importance of understanding orthography in reading English. Recommendations are that ESL proficiency be determined by nonsense-word tests and that the MEWS program be used by students of English as a second dialect.
Date: May 1978
Creator: Sims, Diana Mae
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Integrated Laboratory Sequence Approach in Undergraduate Chemistry Programs (open access)

The Integrated Laboratory Sequence Approach in Undergraduate Chemistry Programs

The problem with which this investigation is concerned is that of a survey of the various integrated laboratory sequence programs at college and university chemistry departments. A preliminary questionnaire served to determine which chemistry departments had tried an ILS approach. Those departments which responded that they had tried an ILS approach and were willing to answer a questionnaire concerning it were sent copies of the main questionnaire. The returned copies of these two questionnaires form the source of data for the dissertation. The dissertation is organized into five chapters. The first chapter gives the background and significance, statement of the problem, the purposes and delimitations of the study, and a definition of terms. Chapter II is a review of the literature. Chapter III describes the collection of data. Construction, validation, administration, and analysis of the questionnaire are considered. The findings of the study are presented in Chapter IV. After an introduction, the occurrence of ILS programs and the reasons for trying or not trying an ILS approach are tabulated. The nature of the ILS programs which have been tried and the problems and changes that have occurred in the various programs are presented. The last part of Chapter IV is …
Date: May 1974
Creator: Luce, Larry G.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Level of Education and Extent of Credit Use of Small Businessmen in the Santos Guardiola Municipality of the Bay Islands, Honduras (open access)

The Level of Education and Extent of Credit Use of Small Businessmen in the Santos Guardiola Municipality of the Bay Islands, Honduras

The small businessman in an undeveloped country often finds himself isolated from formal, institutional credit sources, either through ignorance or by his non-acceptability as a credit risk. Both his lack of credit and lack of education can limit his participation in national development, and in fact, such development might even work against him as it makes his competitors' easier access to these resources even more important. It was concluded that the educational level achieved by the small businessman in Santos Guardiola is roughly the sixth grade, that the lack of business and financial content in their formal education does not prevent their learning about business and finance, and that a large majority of them use credit in their business. It was further concluded that the loan officers with the four lending institutions have adequate education and training to administer the loans made, that business credit needs are generally satisfied without resort to an informal credit market, and that while the deposits and business loans are expanding for all four institutions the credit union has been able to expand most rapidly by attracting the small saver and the small borrower. In addition, it was concluded that development banks are primarily interested …
Date: May 1975
Creator: Spivey, Christopher B.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Effects of Progressive Relaxation Instructions on College Students' Performance on a Paired-Associate Learning Task (open access)

The Effects of Progressive Relaxation Instructions on College Students' Performance on a Paired-Associate Learning Task

The problem of this study was to compare performances of college students given relaxation instructions and those not given those instructions on a paired-associate learning task. The results indicated that relaxation instructions alone produced a decrement in recall. When subjects received relaxation instructions as well as the suggestion that relaxation enhances learning, the decrement did not occur. Thus, situational demand characteristics appeared to be a significant variable in determining what effect relaxation instructions had on recall.
Date: May 1978
Creator: Davis, Franklin Dalton
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Topological Model of Thought (open access)

A Topological Model of Thought

The problem was to develop a model of thought within the basic structure provided by general or "point-set" topology. To do this, it was necessary to make four basic assumptions. It was assumed that each individual possesses more than the classical five senses and that for each of these there exists a category of sensory data. Also, it was assumed that the Cartesian product of these categories formed a set M of thought elements for each individual, and that certain subsets of M provide support for cogitation. The relation, function, continuous function, and homeomorphism, which are used to relate sets in topology, are discussed as a possible ramification of the model for communication. The global properties of the homeomorphism and continuous function present each as a viable support for strong and meaningful communication between thought spaces of individuals.
Date: May 1979
Creator: Cammack, Raymond W.
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Comparison of Three Breaststroke Turns and Their Effects on Swimming Fifty Yards (open access)

A Comparison of Three Breaststroke Turns and Their Effects on Swimming Fifty Yards

The problem with which this study was concerned was that of comparing three methods of executing the competitive breaststroke turn and their effects on swimming fifty yards. The turns utilized were the AAU, NCAA, and somersault. A related purpose was that of analyzing the time a breaststroke competitor was to be submerged on the glide following the turn. One hundred four male, senior swimmers from teams in the Arkansas AAU were rated on five components of the breaststroke. Twenty-nine advanced and thirty novice breaststrokers were selected from this group to participate in this study. The subjects were timed for a distance of fifty yards using, in order, the AAU, NCAA, and somersault turns.
Date: May 1973
Creator: Courtway, Robert Franklin, 1927-
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Comparative Analysis of the Writings of John Dewey and B. F. Skinner as They Relate to the Development of a Technology of Teaching (open access)

A Comparative Analysis of the Writings of John Dewey and B. F. Skinner as They Relate to the Development of a Technology of Teaching

The problem of this study was to effect a comparative study of B. F. Skinner and John Dewey with respect to the development of a technology of teaching. The purposes of this study were to analyze and compare the writings of Dewey and Skinner as they relate to the development of a technology of teaching, to synthesize the findings of this analysis and comparison and direct it to the technology of teaching, and to create and enumerate new insights into the teaching phenomena. The procedures for completing the study were based upon the selection of four basic constructs which allowed a framework on which to hang a comparative study of B. F. Skinner and John Dewey as their writings related to the development of a technology of teaching. These constructs were (1) naturalism and the scientific point of view; (2) knowledge and experience; (3) evolution and control of culture; and (4) the philosophy of education as it relates to the technology of teaching. The methods used to complete the study were the analysis and synthesis of Dewey's and Skinner's writings and their relative positions to the four constructs mentioned were shown. Other authorities were also consulted in hopes that the …
Date: May 1976
Creator: McCain, Harry B.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Retentive Aspects of Selected Qualities of Fitness as a Function of Inactivity in College Men (open access)

The Retentive Aspects of Selected Qualities of Fitness as a Function of Inactivity in College Men

The purposes of this study were to (a) investigate the physiological changes produced in college men after a nine-week circuit training and jogging conditioning program, (b) analyze the effects of deconditioning periods of four, six, and eight weeks upon the physical fitness of college men, and (c) compare the developmental and retentive aspects of muscular strength, muscular endurance, circulo-respiratory endurance, and skinfold measurements. Pearson Product-Moment correlations of pre-test measures, post-test measures, differences between pre-test and post-test measures, and differences between post-test and respective retention test measures did not identify any consistent pattern of developmental or retentive relationships. The components of fitness tended to develop and deteriorate independently of each other.
Date: May 1978
Creator: Poteet, John R.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Relationship of Authoritarianism to the Behavior of Pre-Service Science Teachers (open access)

The Relationship of Authoritarianism to the Behavior of Pre-Service Science Teachers

The problem of this study was to investigate the relationship between the degree of authoritarianism expressed by pre-service secondary science teachers and the ways in which they spent their instructional time. This study was conducted on all students enrolled in the secondary science instructional methods course at a large North Texas area university for the fall semester of 1972 and the spring semester of 1973. The total population for the study was 55 students. To aid in resolution of the problem three purposes were formulated. The first purpose was to determine whether authoritarianism expressed by prospective science teachers was related to the ways they spent their instructional time. The second purpose was to determine if the authoritarianism expressed by prospective science teachers was related to their use of an indirect teaching style. The third purpose was to provide feedback to the prospective science teachers on the ways they spent their instructional time. It was concluded that teachers who were very authoritarian asked fewer questions and a different type of question than someone of lesser authoritarianism. The authoritarian asked questions that could be answered with a short answer such as yes or no, while the lesser authoritarian asked questions that allow …
Date: May 1975
Creator: Heard, Virgil G.
System: The UNT Digital Library
An Investigation of Certification in Computer Science as a Teaching Field in Secondary Schools in the United States (open access)

An Investigation of Certification in Computer Science as a Teaching Field in Secondary Schools in the United States

The purpose of this study was to investigate the status of computer science teacher certification in the United States. Methods used included a survey of chief teacher certification officers in all fifty states to determine the status of each state concerning the certification of high school computer science teachers and a survey of forty selected leaders in the field of computer science education to determine the current and future status of computer science education and to identify the courses most appropriate for computer science teacher training programs. Status reports on all fifty states were presented. Summaries for the states that offer certification in computer science as a field by itself and as a part of another subject field were provided. Five state-approved computer science certification programs were reviewed.
Date: May 1983
Creator: Taylor, Harriet G. (Harriet George)
System: The UNT Digital Library
Technology: A Significant Factor for Developing Education (open access)

Technology: A Significant Factor for Developing Education

The problem to which this study is addressed is that of education in a technological age. The principal concern is for the recognition of technology in developing general education for the student with particular reference to industrial arts education. The purposes of the study are to assess technology's significance for education, concepts of education which postulate technology as significant, and the impact of technology on education. Finally, the study discusses critically the implications of these assessments for industrial arts education. Four categories of sources provide the data: the history and philosophy of technology, social sciences, the work of generalists, and education. Selection of data includes both common and divergent viewpoints of facts and judgments. The data are formed into a composite structure of ideas which have implications for education in a technological world.
Date: May 1982
Creator: Herrington, Glen D. (Glen Dale)
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Comparison of Recall by University Bible Students After Discussion and After Self-Study (open access)

A Comparison of Recall by University Bible Students After Discussion and After Self-Study

Recall of expository prose after one of two learning techniques was determined. Pearson correlation did not discover a significant difference between the recall writings of the examinees who studied by discussion and those who studied by underlining. The significance of the difference between two proportions found that the group which underlined recalled significantly better than the group which discussed what they had read. This highly significant difference was almost identical when all synonyms from the Turbo Lightning computer program were considered correct recall and analyzed by the significance of the difference between two proportions.
Date: May 1987
Creator: Stovall, Johnny Harold
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Development and Interpretation of Several Symbolic Models of Thought (open access)

The Development and Interpretation of Several Symbolic Models of Thought

Philosophical and physiological investigations define thought to be the result of thinking. psychological Inquiry has mainly focused on discovery of the mechanisms and topology of thought. Philosophical Inquiry either has explored the mind-body problem or has analyzed the linguistics of the expression of a thought. However, neither has Investigated adequately phenomenal characteristics of thought Itself, the Intermediary between the production and the expression of a thought. The use of thought to analyze phenomenal characteristics of thought engenders a paradox. If the expression of thought requires finite series of linked words with rules governing syntax, then analysis of both the thought and the expression of the thought must necessarily transcend the linguistic level. During the last century many examples of logical paradoxes In linguistics of thought have been given. The culminating difficulty of dealing with a finite structure, a characteristic of any language, Is Godel's Incompleteness Theorem, which says in essence that in order to render all decisions about a finite system requires the use of material outside the system. Thus, a potentially complete interpretation of thought must use some technique which is basically non-linguistic . Wittgenstein proposed such a method with his "Picture theory. " This technique solves the major …
Date: May 1986
Creator: Keyton, Michael M. (Michael Murray)
System: The UNT Digital Library
Sociology Faculty in Texas Public Community Colleges: An Exploration in the Sociology of Teaching (open access)

Sociology Faculty in Texas Public Community Colleges: An Exploration in the Sociology of Teaching

The research problem was to develop a comprehensive, descriptive profile on full-time sociology faculty employed by public community colleges in the State of Texas in terms of demographic characteristics, academic and professional preparation, and teaching and other professional practices. A forty-three item questionnaire was sent to the population under investigation. By November of 1982, eightytwo (80.4 percent) of the 102 instructors contacted had responded.
Date: May 1983
Creator: Semones, James King, III
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Objectives of Basic Political Science Courses in Texas Institutions of Higher Education as Perceived by Instructors of the Courses (open access)

The Objectives of Basic Political Science Courses in Texas Institutions of Higher Education as Perceived by Instructors of the Courses

The State of Texas requires the completion of all six semester hours of government for graduation from a public college, but does not provide detailed guidelines regarding content, and related objectives, for these courses. Thus instructors have considerable discretion in the setting of course objectives. The problem of this dissertation, therefore, is the determination of course objectives actually set and the general orientation within political education that the objectives may reflect.
Date: May 1984
Creator: Lauch, Michael Marsh
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Follow-Up Study of Master's Degree Graduates in Physical Education at North Texas State University: 1965-1976 (open access)

A Follow-Up Study of Master's Degree Graduates in Physical Education at North Texas State University: 1965-1976

This study investigates different factors related to master's degree graduates 1965-1976 in Physical Education at North Texas State University in order to gain information about the master's degree program's relevance to the subsequent career. The findings of the study support the following conclusions: 1. Approximately two-thirds of the graduates thought the program had satisfactorily prepared them for their current positions. 2. Seventy per cent of the graduates suggested there should be a core of courses required in the master's degree program in physical education. The courses most often included in the responses regarding core courses were Research Perspective in Physical Education, Thesis, Mechanical Analysis of Motor Skills, Professional Preparation in Physical Education, Administrative Problems in Physical Education, and Testing in Physical Education. 3. The greatest strengths of the master's degree program in physical education at North Texas State University as reported by the graduates were faculty, research work for students, teaching resources and courses available. 4. The greatest weakness of the master's degree program in physical education at North Texas State University as indicated by the graduates was availability of facilities. 5. The majority of the graduates suggested the following: candidates should be free to select a variety of courses, …
Date: May 1977
Creator: Oladunjoye, Matthew O.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Selected Research Studies and Professional Literature Dealing with Physiological, Socioeconomic, Psychological, and Cultural Differences Between Black and White Males with Reference to the Performance of Athletic Skills (open access)

Selected Research Studies and Professional Literature Dealing with Physiological, Socioeconomic, Psychological, and Cultural Differences Between Black and White Males with Reference to the Performance of Athletic Skills

This study was designed to accomplish an in-depth examination and documentary analysis of professional literature and scientific studies in order to identify and synthesize reported physiological, socioeconomic, psychological , and cultural differences between American black and white male athletes in the performance of selected athletic skills. The following major conclusions seem justifiable from the data which has been reported: 1) Physical differences impede or enhance athletic performance in certain athletic activities. 2) Social elements influences the choice and extent to which both races are involved in athletics. 3) Black male athletes have equal or stronger control of their emotions than white male athletes. 4) Culture and environment affect the development of traits in both races which contribute to their success in selected athletic skills. 5) How athletic skills are acquired accounts for the success both races experience in selected athletic skills. 6) A positive relationship exists between education and vocational aspiration and athletic success for white male athletes, but athletic success has independent consequences for facilitating higher levels of education for black male athletes. 7) black male athletes perform more successfully in reactive activities and white male athletes perform more skillfully in self-paces athletic activities.
Date: May 1980
Creator: Bayless, Vaurice G.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Factors Related to Travel Mode Choices in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metropolitan Area (open access)

Factors Related to Travel Mode Choices in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metropolitan Area

This study examined the factors related to travel mode choices in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metropolitan Area. Changes in population, life style and economy of the Dallas-Fort Worth region over the last few decades demand a careful re-examination of travel demand tools and methods. The purpose of the study was to provide an understanding of transportation modal choice in the region. Those demographic variables best predicting the choices were identified. The Home Interview Survey, a set of disaggregate data from the 19 84 North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG) Regional Travel Survey, was analyzed using logistic regression. The major findings of the research indicate that about 97 percent of the travelers in the study area used private cars and 3 percent used public transit. Household income and cars-vans were significant explanatory variables. The impact of household income and number of car-vans available upon an individual's decision for travel mode choice were very important. The number of car-vans available in the household, and age of respondents were significant predictors in travel mode. Household members with incomes of $30,000 to $39,000 and those with incomes of at least $50,000 tended to use more private cars than did other income groups. Also, household …
Date: May 1988
Creator: Karimpour, Abdolmehdi
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Comparison of the Teaching of History in Teacher Colleges in the Metropolitan Region and Other Regions in Thailand (open access)

A Comparison of the Teaching of History in Teacher Colleges in the Metropolitan Region and Other Regions in Thailand

The purpose of this study is to compare and analyze the teaching of history in teachers colleges in the Metropolitan region and other regions in Thailand. Variables examined in this study include the following: salary, teaching experience, degrees held, the number of graduate credit hours in history, the number of graduate credit hours in education, attendance at professional meetings, the number of publications, membership in professional organizations, the number of hours devoted to course preparations, teaching load, and teaching behaviors. The comparison is based on geographical location of the teachers colleges by region. The survey instrument, after intensive review and validation by selected faculty both in Thailand and the United States, was distributed to the 180 history instructors in the teachers colleges in the six major regions of Thailand. The total number of responses was 138, or 76.7 per cent. The statistical procedures used in the analyses of data include frequency and percentage of responses, a chi square test of independence, t test, the Yates* correction for continuity, and Fisher's Exact Probability Test (2-tailed). The data findings from this study indicate that there is a high degree of similarity between the respondents from the Metropolitan region and other regions' history …
Date: May 1986
Creator: Ayuwathana, Suratath
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Effects of Perceived Sex-Appropriateness of a Task on Performance of Selected Sports Skills (open access)

The Effects of Perceived Sex-Appropriateness of a Task on Performance of Selected Sports Skills

Recent literature reveals that sex differences in performance actually might be reflections of sex differences in perceptions about the sex-appropriateness and the masculinity and femininity of certain activities. Therefore, this study was designed to determine the effects of perceived sex-appropriateness of a task upon performance of selected sport skills.
Date: May 1983
Creator: Harris, Victoria L. (Victoria Lou)
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Effect of Ritalin on WISC-R Block Design WISC-R Coding and Bender Gestalt Developmental Scores of Hyperactive Children (open access)

The Effect of Ritalin on WISC-R Block Design WISC-R Coding and Bender Gestalt Developmental Scores of Hyperactive Children

Psychological research suggests that Ritalin reduces the rate of maladaptive behaviors in hyperactive children but does not improve their academic performance. Teachers, however, often assert that writing skills and other graphic work are improved by Ritalin. Twenty elementary school children who had been diagnosed as hyperactive and who were taking Ritalin were tested using WISC-R coding, WISC-R block design, and Bender Gestalt. Ten of the subjects were assigned to a group which was first tested when the children were off Ritalin and subsequently tested when they were on Ritalin. The sequence was reversed for the remaining ten. This procedure was designed to counterbalance the effect of practice. Direct difference t-tests indicated that there were no differences between groups regarding any of the three dependent measures. Thus, results indicate that the popular conceptions among educators regarding the efficacy of Ritalin for improving visual-motor efficiency is open to serious question.
Date: May 1986
Creator: Wall, Mark
System: The UNT Digital Library