First-Year Papers Cover Page and Editorial Board

THE FIRST-YEAR PAPERS Volume 20, 2015 – 2016 EDITORS (in alphabetical order) Haley Dougherty Justin Fortier Lydia Herndon Caroline Howell Dylan Ingram Lilla Kis Mathilde Sauquet Emily Turner Editors were drawn from the Class of 2019 Deans’ Scholars Editing, Layout, and Publishing Tennyson O’Donnell, Director, Allan K. Smith Center for Writing and Rhetoric, and Allan K. Smith Lecturer in English Composition Dania Field, Coordinator of First-Year Academic Experiences Amy Harrell, Librarian, Digital Projects The First-Year Papers were established in 1996-1997 to recognize the excellent written work of the first-year students at Trinity College. Each year, submissions are drawn from First-Year Seminars and from courses associated with the Cities, Guided Studies, InterArts, and Interdisciplinary Science Programs. The First-Year Papers Volume 20, 2015 – 2016 Published by Trinity College Hartford, Connecticut, September 201

mOthertongue Spring 2016 (Full PDF)

Full PDF document of the Spring 2016 mOthertongue journal

First-Year Papers Editorial Board

THE FIRST-YEAR PAPERS Volume 21, 2016 – 2017 EDITORS (in alphabetical order) Samantha Jarvis Elizabeth Patino Vianna Iorio Christopher Caskin, Jr. Editors were drawn from the Class of 2019 Deans’ Scholars Editing, Layout, and Publishing Tennyson O’Donnell, Director, Allan K. Smith Center for Writing and Rhetoric, and Allan K. Smith Lecturer in English Composition Jessica Henning, Administrative Assistant, Allan K. Smith Center for Writing and Rhetoric Amy Harrell, Librarian, Digital Projects The First-Year Papers were established in 1996-1997 to recognize the excellent written work of the first-year students at Trinity College. Each year, submissions are drawn from First-Year Seminars and from courses associated with the Cities, Guided Studies, InterArts, and Interdisciplinary Science Programs. The First-Year Papers Volume 21, 2016 – 2017 Published by Trinity College Hartford, Connecticut, September 201

Using Item response models to investigate attitudes towards divorce

Item Response Theory (IRT) is a form of latent structure analysis that is used to analyze binary or ordinal response data. IRT models are used to evaluate the relationships between the latent trait of interest and the items measuring the trait. Several IRT models will be fitted to assess the factors that lead to divorce in the Maltese Islands. The 1-PL and 2-PL logistic Rasch models are used for dichotomous responses, whereas the 1-PL rating scale and 1-PL partial-credit models are used for polytomous responses. All the models are fitted using the generalized linear latent and mixed modeling (GLLAMM) framework. The gllamm directive estimates parameters by maximum likelihood using adaptive quadrature (Rabe-Hesketh, Skrondal, and Pickles 2002; 2005). In the 1-PL Rasch model, the probability that a person agrees with a divorce-related item is modeled as a function of subject ability and item difficulty parameters. The major weakness of this model is that the items have the same discrimination parameter. In the 2-PL Birnbaum model, an item-specific weight is added so that the slope of the item response function varies between the items. The 1-PL rating scale model specifies that the items share the same rating scale structure, while the 1-PL partial credit model specifies a distinct rating scale structure for each item.peer-reviewe

Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law Commencement Program - Class of 2016

The Program for the Commencement Exercises of the 61st graduating class of the Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law in 201