Personality Correlates of Cardiovascular Reactivity

Neuroticism is a personality trait characterized by one’s susceptibility to experience negative emotions, such as loneliness, self-consciousness, sadness, and worry. Neuroticism also has been found to be linked to blunted cardiovascular reactivity, which in turn has been shown to be associated with negative health outcomes, such as stroke or heart disease. The present study examined 50 undergraduate females at the University of Mississippi in order to examine the relationship of neuroticism and cardiovascular reactivity rates during a stressful speech task. Heart rate (HR) and blood pressure (BP) levels were recorded during rest and the stress periods, and neuroticism levels were measured by the NEO-FFI. No significant relationships between neuroticism and cardiovascular reactivity levels were found

Screening the Poor: The Legality of Drug Testing for Welfare Benefits

On March 8, 2014, at the conclusion of the 2014 Virginia General Assembly regular session, Virginia joined at least 17 other states that, in this year alone, have introduced proposals to screen or test applicants for illegal substances prior to obtaining public assistance.1 Following the enactment of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, which permitted states to conduct drug testing as part of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, states began proposing drug screenings for applicants of public welfare benefits.2 Despite a 2003 Sixth Circuit decision holding that suspicionless drug testing is un-constitutional, in the last three years, eleven states have passed legislation that permit drug testing for welfare benefits in certain situations.3 The Virginia House of Delegates considered a similar measure this ses-sion with House Bill 234, which, if passed, would have required local social services departments to “screen” all recipients of public assistance in Virginia to determine whether probable cause existed to warrant drug testing of the recipient.4 While H.B. 234 was not as brazen as similar attempts in other states to indiscriminately drug test all applicants, the bill’s failure to outline what constitutes “screening” still presents the constitutional question of whether this assessment represents an unreasonable search, thus violating the Fourth Amendment

A Poor Measure of the Wrong Thing: The Food Stamp Program\u27s Quality Control System Discourages Participation by Working Families

This Note examines how the Food Stamp Program\u27s quality control system has contributed to an unprecedented drop in the number of households receiving food stamps. Since the only practical measure of the program\u27s effectiveness is the rate of error in distributing benefits, state administrators face tremendous pressure, in the form of fiscal sanctions from the federal government, to reduce errors. That emphasis has resulted in state policies designed to eliminate errors, but these state policies have had a harmful side-effect in discouraging, if not preventing, otherwise eligible households from participating in the program. This is due, in part, to the changing composition of households seeking food stamps. In particular, more eligible households are working at least part-time, yet remain poor enough to be eligible for food stamps. These households have complicated income characteristics that are a fertile source of administrative error. The states that have begun requiring households with earned income to recertify for the program more frequently have seen participation among these households decline notably. A number of similar state policy responses have resulted in a quality control system that favors the government interest in payment accuracy at the cost of unfairly burdening those participating and potentially eligible for the program. While merely adjusting the sanction policy would provide relief to states with high error rates, a more substantial overhaul of the measures used to monitor the Food Stamp Program would provide a more useful assessment of state performance and remove unnecessary barriers to participation

The \u3ci\u3eVirago\u3c/i\u3e Paradigm of Female Sanctity: Constructing the Masculine Woman in Medieval Christianity

The Latin word virago, in its simplest definition, means “a man-like, warrior woman.” For Christian men and women in the Patristic era and the central Middle Ages, the virago represented a woman who denied all biological characteristics of her womanhood, fiercely protected her virginity, and fully embodied the virtues of Christian masculinity. The virago paradigm of female sanctity, a creation of male writers, reconciled a pervasive fear of the female sex with an obvious admiration for holy women. Additionally, the virago model maintained the supremacy of masculine virtues, upheld a patriarchal hierarchy, and created a metaphorical space that validated women’s spiritual authority and activity. This dissertation identifies and explores the significance of the medieval construction and implementation of the virago paradigm of female sanctity in the central Middle Ages. The virago model of female sanctity emerges in the medieval creation of the legends of virgin martyrs and in a small corpus of letters influential men wrote to religious women. The virago paradigm also appears in striking detail in two medieval texts associated with the twelfth-century holy woman, Christina of Markyate. In constructing the narrative of Christina’s life, commonly referred to as Life of Christina of Markyate, the anonymous male author describes Christina’s transformation from a young girl into a heroic, wise, and fearless virago. The second text associated with Christina of Markyate, St. Albans Psalter, serves as a medieval guidebook or manual for the virago. The three major components of the Psalter, the cycle of miniatures, the story of St. Alexis, and the commentary on spiritual warfare provided the female reader with visual, allegorical, and scriptural representations of the virago. Advisor: Jessica Coop

Physical Therapy Management and Recovery of an Individual with a Severe Traumatic Brain Injury: A Case Report

Background: Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) leads to long lasting effects on health and quality of life. The prognosis following a TBI is unique and often unpredictable. While research is beginning to study the impact of rehabilitation on outcome following TBI, there is minimal good quality evidence in the literature on what the most effective rehabilitation interventions are for the TBI population. Case Description: The patient is a 35-year-old man who suffered a severe traumatic brain injury after falling off a bicycle. He was diagnosed with a right subdural hematoma and a left sided fracture through mastoid air cells. He received a right craniectomy for evacuation of a subdural hematoma and a left lateral cerebellar craniectomy with evacuation of an epidural hematoma. During his inpatient rehabilitation stay the patient participated in interventions including: functional mobility, gait training, complex balance training, coordination and agility, dual task training, and return to work tasks. Outcome Measures: The patient received physical therapy interventions for 60 minutes, 5 days a week, for a total inpatient rehabilitation length of stay of 64 days. The main outcome measures utilized with the patient included: Berg Balance Test, 6 Minute Walk Test, and High-Level Mobility Assessment Tool. Discussion: The patient demonstrated significant improvement in mobility during his stay in an inpatient rehabilitation facility, despite multiple medical complications and negative prognostic factors. This case report provides preliminary support for the use of a comprehensive rehabilitation program for severe TBI. Future research is needed on the outcomes following severe TBI and to establish standards for rehabilitation decision-making

The Beast: A Book Review

In vivid and candid detail, Tracy Thompson’s The Beast is an honest attempt to pull back the curtain on depression. This reveal gives both clinician and layman a behind the scenes look at the destructive and debilitating effects on a life suffering with illness that the brain can’t quite understand. Tracing her roots and upbringing, Thompson discloses that mental illness has always been a part of her family. As a teenager she would write the word depression in her journal, not knowing that the “beast” would unfortunately accompany her throughout the rest of her life. As the title suggests, this enemy would reap havoc upon her career, her self-esteem, and her most intimate relationships. The Beast is a powerful story of a nationally recognized journalist with the Washington Post who, in spite of the cultural taboo and ignorance surrounding mental illness in the 1960’s and 1970’s, learned to cope with depression. Thompson’s arduous and courageous battle with depression is an inspiring story of a woman who endured years of talk therapy, evolving psychotropic medications, and numerous suicide attempts

Screening the Poor: The Legality of Drug Testing for Welfare Benefits

On March 8, 2014, at the conclusion of the 2014 Virginia General Assembly regular session, Virginia joined at least 17 other states that, in this year alone, have introduced proposals to screen or test applicants for illegal substances prior to obtaining public assistance. Following the enactment of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, which permitted states to conduct drug testing as part of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, states began proposing drug screenings for applicants of public welfare benefits. Despite a 2003 Sixth Circuit decision holding that suspicionless drug testing is unconstitutional, in the last three years, eleven states have passed legislation that permit drug testing for welfare benefits in certain situations. The Virginia House of Delegates considered a similar measure this session with House Bill 234, which, if passed, would have required local social services departments to screen all recipients of public assistance in Virginia to determine whether probable cause existed to warrant drug testing of the recipient. While H.B. 234 was not as brazen as similar attempts in other states to indiscriminately drug test all applicants, the bill\u27s failure to outline what constitutes screening still presents the constitutional question of whether this assessment represents an unreasonable search, thus violating the Fourth Amendment

A Case Study Of The Perceptions Of Principals Of Voucher Eligible High Schools In Florida

The publication of A Nation at Risk in 1983 has prompted a series of attempts to revise the educational system\u27s outcomes. Legislative and executive reform bills have resulted in Educational Vouchers being a prime source of reform. A case study of the perceptions of public high school principals in Florida that are at Voucher Eligible high schools to those perceptions of principals at schools graded \u27A\u27 as of the 2002-03 academic school year was the focus of this study. Four public high school principals from two Florida districts were used in this study. Two schools were identified as Voucher Eligible and graded F and two were examples of best practices or graded A or B . Analyzed data identified recurring patterns between the four schools.Both advocates and detractors view of vouchers would be given a full historical review. Included in the research were the four major educational criteria of educational vouchers that were used in voucher development policy. The three major components of Florida\u27s Voucher Programs, along with the No Child Left Behind Act were examined along with accountability measures and parent/student rights. The data revealed that there was a positive relationship between the minority rate of a school and the school\u27s grade. Data also revealed that it would be beneficial for all schools and communities to work together to address the reading level issue as these programs have shown a positive relationship between the overall reading level and the school\u27s grade