Clarifying Jeremiah\u27s Complaints

In lieu of an abstract, below is the essay\u27s first paragraph. It is easy to believe that God does not enforce His own laws when one witnesses a sinner go unpunished for a crime. However, sinners are not condemned upon the execution of sin to an afterlife of damnation because as God’s children, we are always given the choice to repent and follow God’s teachings

The Assumptions that Define Me

In lieu of an abstract, below is the essay\u27s first paragraph. When I was a little kid, I believed that before colored movies were created, people saw in black and white. I was honestly convinced that colored film was a direct result of humans finally learning how to see in color. I also believed that the older you got the more warts you grew, that eating watermelon seeds could lead to the spontaneous maturity of a new melon in your stomach, and that God was a man with a flowing white beard and kind eyes, not unlike those attributes most often accredited to Santa. The logic of a five year old is not perfect, but in many ways I have found my first beliefs to be the most challenging

The Effects of Predictability on Stereotypic Behavior in Nonclinical Adult Humans (Homo sapiens) and Rhesus Macaques (Macaca mulatta)

Stereotypies, or repetitive and purposeless behaviors, are observed in both humans and other animals. They have been primarily studied in captive animal and clinical human populations with comparably little research devoted to understanding less severe levels of stereotypies observed in nonclinical populations of adult humans and in most captive animals. As these behaviors are sometimes associated with routine events, I explored the relationship between the predictability of anticipated events and mild stereotypies. I studied this relationship in captive rhesus macaques and a novel comparison group of adult humans from a nonclinical population. I designed two experimental paradigms, a wait paradigm and a task paradigm, to elicit stereotypic behavior in both species. I also provided participants with questionnaires about their current emotional state and individual trait differences. I found that while my manipulations of predictability did not spur differences in stereotypic behavior, both monkeys and humans performed stereotypic behavior in both the wait and task paradigms. Humans performed similar amounts of stereotypic behavior between the two paradigms and individual amounts of stereotypic behavior were positively correlated between paradigms. Yet, the rhesus macaques performed significantly more behaviors during the wait paradigm than in the task paradigm and their stereotypic behaviors between paradigms were not positively correlated, which suggests that they responded differently to the two scenarios. I then compared monkey and human stereotypic behavior during the wait paradigm that was a 5-minute uninterrupted period for both species. The human participants performed significantly more stereotypic behavior than the captive rhesus macaques—a highly unexpected result given that there has been little research devoted to stereotypies in nonclinical adult humans. One reason for this difference may be differences in typical stimulation levels between species as participants who reported feeling more bored performed more stereotypies. My results suggest that while stereotypies in captive animals are typically considered abnormal pathological behaviors that warrant intervention and mitigation, they may serve a function in response to the current environment that is retained across two species of primates. As intervention and mitigation are typically not proposed for mild levels of stereotypic behavior in nonclinical populations of humans, the results in this dissertation suggest that captive animal managers may need to reexamine management strategies for captive animals that perform mild levels of stereotypic behavior

Selection on Moral Hazard in Health Insurance

In this paper we explore the possibility that individuals may select insurance coverage in part based on their anticipated behavioral response to the insurance contract. Such "selection on moral hazard" can have important implications for attempts to combat either selection or moral hazard. We explore these issues using individual-level panel data from a single fi?rm, which contain information about health insurance options, choices, and subsequent claims. To identify the behavioral response to health insurance coverage and the heterogeneity in it, we take advantage of a change in the health insurance options offered to some, but not all of the ?firm's employees. We begin with descriptive evidence that is suggestive of both heterogeneous moral hazard as well as selection on it, with individuals who select more coverage also appearing to exhibit greater behavioral response to that coverage. To formalize this analysis and explore its implications, we develop and estimate a model of plan choice and medical utilization. The results from the modeling exercise echo the descriptive evidence, and allow for further explorations of the interaction between selection and moral hazard. For example, one implication of our estimates is that abstracting from selection on moral hazard could lead one to substantially over-estimate the spending reduction associated with introducing a high deductible health insurance option.Insurance markets, Adverse selection, Moral hazard, Health insurance

An Environmental Assessment of Barriers to HPV Vaccination in Lira, Uganda

Introduction: Vaccination against HPV is a global concern, given that cervical cancer is the most common cancer among women in developing countries, such as Uganda. Uganda has launched a national program to vaccinate girls 9-13 with Gardasilâ for HPV prevention, yet areas like Lira in northern Uganda are well below the 80% coverage goal. While there is infrastructure at a national level to vaccinate girls against HPV, this project aimed to assess barriers to vaccination at a local level. Methods: Semi-structured interviews with individuals in Lira, providers at Ayira Health Services, and a stakeholder at the Uganda Ministry of Health were conducted. Each category of participant followed an interview guide that aimed to uncover personal barriers, logistical obstacles, or population-wide issues that hindered vaccination. Interviews were audio recorded, transcribed, and qualitatively analyzed using the NVivo software program. Results: 26 individuals, 2 providers, and 1 stakeholder were interviewed for this project. Data analysis shows common themes of distance, information, and stock supply as barriers to HPV vaccination attainment. Multiple individuals expressed a lack of understanding in the virology of HPV, such as how it is acquired, spread, or its causal relation to cervical cancer. Conclusion: Interviews provided a setting to discuss awareness and education about HPV, cervical cancer, and the national vaccination program. These results uncover barriers that can be addressed at local, national, and global levels to increase vaccination rates in Uganda. This study design could also be applicable in other countries that are below the ideal vaccination coverage rate

Rabies Surveillance Identifies Potential Risk Corridors and Enables Management Evaluation

Intensive efforts are being made to eliminate the raccoon variant of rabies virus (RABV) from the eastern United States and Canada. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Wildlife Services National Rabies Management Program has implemented enhanced rabies surveillance (ERS) to improve case detection across the extent of the raccoon oral rabies vaccination (ORV) management area. We evaluated ERS and public health surveillance data from 2006 to 2017 in three northeastern USA states using a dynamic occupancy modeling approach. Our objectives were to examine potential risk corridors for RABV incursion from the U.S. into Canada, evaluate the effectiveness of ORV management strategies, and identify surveillance gaps. ORV management has resulted in a decrease in RABV cases over time within vaccination zones (from occupancy (ψ) of 0.60 standard error (SE) = 0.03 in the spring of 2006 to ψ of 0.33 SE = 0.10 in the spring 2017). RABV cases also reduced in the enzootic area (from ψ of 0.60 SE = 0.03 in the spring of 2006 to ψ of 0.45 SE = 0.05 in the spring 2017). Although RABV occurrence was related to habitat type, greater impacts were associated with ORV and trap–vaccinate–release (TVR) campaigns, in addition to seasonal and yearly trends. Reductions in RABV occupancy were more pronounced in areas treated with Ontario Rabies Vaccine Bait (ONRAB) compared to RABORAL V-RG®. Our approach tracked changes in RABV occurrence across space and time, identified risk corridors for potential incursions into Canada, and highlighted surveillance gaps, while evaluating the impacts of management actions. Using this approach, we are able to provide guidance for future RABV management

Forgiveness Motives Among Evangelical Christians: Implications for Christian Marriage and Family Therapists

Therapists and researchers interested in forgiveness can learn from those who have experienced interpersonal wounds and have chosen to forgive. We interviewed 20 evangelical Christian forgivers, asking about motives for forgiveness. Transcripts were analyzed using qualitative methods. Five categories of motivation are presented: comfort, duty, relational, humility/empathy, and Christian beliefs. Respondents described multiple motives for forgiveness, often combining a desire for comfort or a sense of duty with their Christian beliefs. Four implications for Christian marriage and family therapists are discussed: Expect diversity, avoid moralistic views of motives, remember religious resources in the forgiveness process, and expect benefits, but not immediately

Still Too Fat to Fight

The problem of junk food sold in schools is not just a national health issue. It is a national security issue.Over the past 40 years, obesity rates have more than tripled for children and teens. About 1 in 4 young American adults is now too overweight to join the military. Being overweight or obese is the number one medical reason why young adults cannot enlist. When weight problems are combined with poor education, criminal backgrounds, and other disqualifiers, an estimated 75 percent of young Americans could not serve in the military if they wanted to