Shoplifting control through feedback to sales personnel

Shoplifting, a behavior engaged in by a large percentage of the population, has major economic and social costs. The purpose of these two experiments was to determine if shoplifting could be controlled by altering the behavior of store personnel

The relationships among achievement, self-concept, and role models for black students

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among black student achievement, self-concept, discipline, and the number of black teachers a subject was assigned during grades K-8. The study focused on the characteristics of eighth graders who had attended the same urban school district in the piedmont area of North Carolina since kindergarten. Information for the study included California Achievement Test scores, Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory scores, and the number of black teachers for each of 146 black eighth graders. In addition, suspension data collected by the school district was used as an indicator of overall student behavior

How do firefighters cope? : an investigation of coping strategies and symptoms of distress within the context of daily stressors

This study investigated firefighters' coping strategies and distress levels in the context of daily stressors. Participants were 261 professional line firefighters employed by the Greensboro Fire Department in North Carolina. Participants completed the Ways of Coping Questionnaire (WCQ, Folkman & Lazarus, 1988a) to assess the coping strategies used, the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90R, Derogatis, 1994) to determine the nature of distress experienced, the Perceived Social Support Scale (PSS, Procidano & Heller, 1983) to assess respondents' perceptions of social support, and a demographic questionnaire. After data collection, factor analyses was performed to determine the factor items from each instrument to be used in a structural linear model. Then, a structural model was analyzed for goodness of fit

A categorization of events at the International Tuba-Euphonium conferences: 1973 to 2014

The purpose of this document was to categorize how the International Tuba Euphonium Conferences have been used to meet the goals stated in the International Tuba Euphonium Association’s constitution during the conferences from 1973 to 2014. Definitions of the parameters are included in the final document. The original constitution of Tubists United Brotherhood Association (TUBA) were used in writing the definition of the parameters and gave clearly defined area of focus. The results of this document show that events in all of the areas of focus defined by the constitution of TUBA. Areas of focus did not receive equal representation. The constitution of TUBA did not specify priority of the purposes. For the purposes of this document, it was assumed that purpose categories from the constitution of TUBA were to be of equal importance. ITEA did not meet its goals based on the categorization of the events, and the criteria set forth in the constitution of TUBA

Three essays on smoking bans

This dissertation contains three essays, each on a different aspect of the economics of smoking bans and smoking control policy. Essay One explores the link between cigarette excise taxes, state fiscal considerations, and attitudes towards smoking. Do legislatures use cigarette taxes only to generate revenue or also as a policy tool to control smoking? The paper shows that the level of cigarette excise tax does not seem to be related to anti-smoking sentiment. Signing the Master Settlement Agreement by the states and major tobacco firms seems to have been an impetus for states to raise cigarette taxes. States that enacted smoking ban legislation over the sample period were also more likely to turn to cigarette excise taxes in times of fiscal stress. In Essay Two, the effects of complete smoking bans in restaurants and bars on the prevalence and intensity of smoking are examined. The results of the paper suggest that complete smoking bans have little impact on the prevalence of smoking and have a mixed impact on the intensity of cigarette consumption. While complete bar bans do reduce the number of cigarettes smoked, complete restaurant bans increase the average number of cigarettes smoked. Essay Three uses micro-data at the household level to examine the effect that complete restaurant smoking bans have on the household's dining out expenditures. The essay finds that the bans have no discernable effect on the level of dining out expenditures for non-smoking and smoking households

The effect of feedback on the reliability of self-recording

The purpose of this study was to determine if the reliability of self-recorders could be improved by providing different types of feedback contingent on the reliability of their self-recording. The feedback varied in amount of information: the non-specific feedback group received generalized social reinforcement in order to maintain their self-recording, the verbal feedback group received verbal feedback contingent on reliability, and the verbal plus numerical feedback group was given verbal and numerical feedback, also contingent on reliability. All three groups (N = 7 college student subjects per group) were observed inder four conditions

Changes in body weight and serum lipid levels in low, moderate, and highly competitive male participants of a cardiac rehabilitation program

Fifty-eight white, married, nonsmoking male participants of the Greensboro Cardiac Rehabilitation Program were divided into low (Group I), moderate (Group II), and highly competitive (Group III) groups based on their percentile scores on the "H" (hard driving and competitive) scale of the Jenkins' Activity Survey. The purpose of the study was to determine if a relationship existed between the “H" scale test scores and changes in subjects' body weight and serum lipids within the first six months of program participation. Data on body weight, serum cholesterol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-cholesterol), and triglycerides were collected upon admission and six months after admission. No statistically significant differences were found at six months between the three groups for any of the dependent variables when analyzed via analysis of covariance. Trends were noted, however, in that the adjusted mean changes in total cholesterol and triglycerides six months into the program tended to decrease in the moderate and highly competitive groups and increase in the noncompetitive group

Alienation and the Grotesque in Sylvia Plath's "Ariel" Poems

The author discusses several poems within Sylvia Path's "Ariel" to emphasize the presence of alienation and how it functions with images of the grotesqu

Assessment of the Effectiveness of an Online Learning System in Improving Student Test Performance

Colleges and universities, particularly public institutions, are facing higher enrollments and declining resources from state and federal governments. In this resource-constrained environment, faculty are seeking more efficient and effective teaching strategies to improve student learning and test performance. The authors assessed an online learning system's effectiveness for improving student test performance in a face-to-face learning environment. Results indicated that implementation of the online learning system improved student test performance compared with control test questions and with test performance during a prior semester before system implementation. Implications and limitations are discussed

Voices across generations. Volume two : a collaboration between Black Elk Elementary Third Grade, UNO Educational Leadership Graduate Program.

Dear Reader, From whom do you seek wisdom? Who do you share your insights with? In activities with multiple generations, new perspectives of information and insight can be shared through conversation and activity. This is exactly what we learned this spring in our 2019 collaborative activity with senior residents, graduate students, and 3rd graders. In the following pages, you will read advice acrostic and “I Am” poems from the senior residents at Royale Oaks Assisted Living near 50th and Ames Street. You will read “I am” poems from the Black Elk Elementary 3rd grade students, near 180th and Harrison Street. Lastly, the graduate students in University of Nebraska at Omaha Educational Leadership Department connected with the seniors and served as scribes for the seniors’ letters back and forth with the Black Elk students. Sprinkled throughout the text, you will see their reflection and insight. Age does not define wisdom as you will read