Relationship Commitment as a Moderator of the Effects of Promotion Focus on the Pursuit of Change and Stability Relationship Goals

According to regulatory focus theory, promotion-focused people should experience stronger engagement toward goals which are framed as leading to advancement. However, because situations can afford or constrain people’s regulatory preference, the present research investigates how promotion-focused individuals’ preference for change and advancement may be altered by the affordances offered by the broader contextual environment (i.e., their romantic relationship). I hypothesized that among participants in romantic relationships, those with a promotion focus (chronic or induced) would engage less in relationship goals when they reflected on how completing these goals would positively change their romantic relationship from its current state, compared to relationship goals that would maintain their relationship at its current state. However, I expected this to emerge only among participants low in relational commitment, as this context affords less opportunity for change-related goals to ultimately engender positive outcomes. In three experimental studies, participants nominated a relationship goal they were pursuing because it would lead to either relationship change (i.e., growth) or stability (Study 1; N = 192) or they nominated an important relationship goal that was later framed as leading to future relationship change or stability (Study 2; N = 336, and Study 3; N = 199), and their willingness to engage in their goal was then measured. Results supported the hypothesis and suggest that when the broader context of goal pursuit does not facilitate one’s chronic regulatory aims (i.e., to achieve gains and avoid non-gains), then promotion-focused people downregulate their goal engagement despite the inherent motivational appeal of the goal itself

Here, There be Dragons: A Practitioner Explores Feminist Poststructuralist Theory

Here, There be Dragons: A Practitioner Explores Feminist Poststructuralist Theory In ancient times, it is told, cartographers would write the phrase, “Here, there be dragons” on their maps in order to indicate unknown, unexplored territory beyond the boundaries of what was already discovered. Such a phrase connotes mystique and danger and can raise the specter of fear for those who dare travel into uncharted territory. As an explorer of the intellectual variety, I have had my own encounter with the margins of my known world and have wondered how I might deal with the trouble I met along the way. My journey took me from a comfortable place in the largely realist world of hospital nursing practice and management to a meeting with feminist poststructuralist theory in the form of a doctoral level course. In this article, I examine my encounter with new theory, framing my analysis with work on the pedagogy of theory by both Roger Simon and Laurie Finke in order to consider how I have applied this theory in my work and suggest how my insights might benefit other students and teachers of theory

Sarah Wall Honors Portfolio

Sarah Wall\u27s honors portfolio captured in February 2021

Leveraging Technology To Impact Reading Achievement Of Early Elementary Students

The adoption of technology in the classroom has dramatically changed the way in which teachers teach and students learn. Technology is constantly evolving, creating a sense of urgency to examine the most effective methods to successfully integrate technology into classrooms. The research question addressed in this project was: how can teachers leverage technology to impact reading achievement of early elementary students? The review of literature investigated early literacy skills, proficient readers, reading in the digital age, iPads, technology in the classroom and technology integration models. It was evident that technology alone will not increase student achievement. Wood and Joicus (2014) stated, “Like paper and pencils, technology is a tool, and it’s what teachers and students do with the tool that matters” (p. 133). Technology can transform a classroom and dramatically change results when teachers have the knowledge, background, training and confidence to welcome technology into their daily teaching. Russel and Sorge (1999) argued, “Integrating technology into instruction tends to move classrooms from teacherdominated environments to ones that are more student-centered” (as cited in Pitler, 2007, p. 3). In this capstone, a project was developed to provide teachers with information to help navigate technology with early elementary students. Professional development sessions were created around three main topics; student-led creation, SAMR model integration with language arts learning targets and providing students feedback using technology. Through the professional development sessions teachers will gain knowledge and skills which will help to leverage technology to impact reading achievement with their students

America Shared, or Separate? How Martin Luther King and Malcolm X Illuminate Conceptions of Race Today – and Where We Go From Here

In an effort to unearth the roots of disparate conceptions of race in 21st-century America, this paper analyzes two oppositional paradigms in the Civil Rights Movement – Integrationism and Black Nationalism. The Integrationist movement, led by Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., worked towards a shared America, a multiracial nation in which full citizenship and dignity was bestowed on every individual regardless of skin color. Integrationism was recognized even by its opponents as the Christian answer to segregation and inequality. Its commitment to nonviolence won hearts and minds throughout the latter half of the 20th century, becoming the primary cultural force responsible for the end of state-sanctioned segregation in the southern United States. Meanwhile, Black Nationalism, amplified by Malcolm X, was influenced by both the Black Power movement and the Nation of Islam. This framework promoted Black separatism, submitting that white people would never voluntarily give up their political and economic supremacy without violence. Its leaders argued Integrationism would erase the unique Black identity and colonize Black people within a white-led society. Black Nationalism persisted in academic spheres throughout the 1970s and 1980s, ultimately giving rise to Critical Race Theory (CRT). While CRT was first introduced in academia in the late 20th century, it is only now becoming a leading cultural paradigm for understanding race. This is not surprising: since Black Nationalism and its CRT descendent intentionally reject Christian values, the meteoric rise of this structural conception correlates with the increasing rejection of Biblical principles in mainstream American society

Investigating The Role of Implicit Theories of Relationships on The Interpretation of Investments in Relationship Decision-Making

A person’s prior investment in their romantic relationship is a strong predictor of whether they remain committed to that relationship (e.g., Le et al., 2010; Rusbult, 1980a; 1983), and this pattern is often seen outside of interpersonal contexts as well (e.g., Arkes & Blumer, 1985; Olivola, 2018; Thaler, 1980). However, little research has considered the extent to which commitment-relevant decisions might be affected in a top-down way by people’s implicit theories of relationships (ITRs; Knee, 1998). I theorized that lay theories about how relationships work may affect the extent that people consider past investments when making decisions about continuing with a course of relationship action (or not). Across five online experiments using undergraduate student and adult samples (total N = 1,826), I tested the hypothesis that greater (vs. lesser) relationship investments would influence when people chose to continue with the current course of action or choose to pursue an alternative one, and that this effect would be enhanced amongst people with a stronger growth belief. I hypothesized that higher investment and stronger growth beliefs would lead people to form more optimistic expectations about continuing with a current course of action in the relationship, versus choosing an alternative course of action. Results revealed that greater investment predicted a preference for staying on a current course of action over an alternative one, compared to when there was lower investment. As well, stronger growth beliefs sometimes predicted a preference for staying on a current course of action over an alternative one, compared to weaker growth beliefs. However, the results from these five studies did not support my hypothesis that these two factors would interact. These data suggest that investment size has a much more robust effect on shaping relationship decisions whereas implicit theories of relationships do not seem to reliably make someone more or less sensitive to relationship investments when making these decisions

The role of the phosphopantetheinyltransferase enzyme, PswP, in the biosynthesis of antimicrobial secondary metabolites by <em>Serratia marcescens </em>Db10

Phosphopantetheinyltransferase (PPTase) enzymes fulfil essential roles in primary and secondary metabolism in prokaryotes, archaea and eukaryotes. PPTase enzymes catalyse the essential modification of the carrier protein domain of fatty acid synthases, polyketide synthases (PKSs) and non-ribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPSs). In bacteria and fungi, NRPS and PKS enzymes are often responsible for the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites with clinically relevant properties; these secondary metabolites include a variety of antimicrobial peptides. We have previously shown that in the Gram-negative bacterium Serratia marcescens Db10, the PPTase enzyme PswP is essential for the biosynthesis of an NRPS-PKS dependent antibiotic called althiomycin. In this work we utilize bioinformatic analyses to classify PswP as belonging to the F/KES subfamily of Sfp type PPTases and to putatively identify additional NRPS substrates of PswP, in addition to the althiomycin NRPS-PKS, in Ser. marcescens Db10. We show that PswP is required for the production of three diffusible metabolites by this organism, each possessing antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus. Genetic analyses identify the three metabolites as althiomycin, serrawettin W2 and an as-yet-uncharacterized siderophore, which may be related to enterobactin. Our results highlight the use of an individual PPTase enzyme in multiple biosynthetic pathways, each contributing to the ability of Ser. marcescens to inhibit competitor bacteria by the production of antimicrobial secondary metabolites

How Youth Services Librarians in North Carolina are Working to Serve LGBTQ+ Youth

The purpose of this phenomenological study is to describe the work being done by youth services librarians in North Carolina who are actively working to serve LGBTQ+ youth. This study aims to answer three research questions: 1) How are youth service librarians in North Carolina working to serve LGBTQ+ youth? 2) What information are they using to make decisions about these services? 3) How do they assess these services? Through content analysis of data collected through semi-structured interviews, this study illuminates the services offered by these librarians for LGBTQ+ youth and the process they use to inform and assess those services. The findings have implications for youth services librarians looking to improve their services for LGBTQ+ youth as well as for educators and professional organizations aiming to create or improve existing training opportunities for youth services librarians about serving LGBTQ+ youth in the library.Master of Science in Library Scienc

The insect pathogen Serratia marcescens Db10 uses a hybrid non-ribosomal peptide synthetase-polyketide synthase to produce the antibiotic althiomycin

There is a continuing need to discover new bioactive natural products, such as antibiotics, in genetically-amenable micro-organisms. We observed that the enteric insect pathogen, Serratia marcescens Db10, produced a diffusible compound that inhibited the growth of Bacillis subtilis and Staphyloccocus aureus. Mapping the genetic locus required for this activity revealed a putative natural product biosynthetic gene cluster, further defined to a six-gene operon named alb1-alb6. Bioinformatic analysis of the proteins encoded by alb1-6 predicted a hybrid non-ribosomal peptide synthetase-polyketide synthase (NRPS-PKS) assembly line (Alb4/5/6), tailoring enzymes (Alb2/3) and an export/resistance protein (Alb1), and suggested that the machinery assembled althiomycin or a related molecule. Althiomycin is a ribosome-inhibiting antibiotic whose biosynthetic machinery had been elusive for decades. Chromatographic and spectroscopic analyses confirmed that wild type S. marcescens produced althiomycin and that production was eliminated on disruption of the alb gene cluster. Construction of mutants with in-frame deletions of specific alb genes demonstrated that Alb2-Alb5 were essential for althiomycin production, whereas Alb6 was required for maximal production of the antibiotic. A phosphopantetheinyl transferase enzyme required for althiomycin biosynthesis was also identified. Expression of Alb1, a predicted major facilitator superfamily efflux pump, conferred althiomycin resistance on another, sensitive, strain of S. marcescens. This is the first report of althiomycin production outside of the Myxobacteria or Streptomyces and paves the way for future exploitation of the biosynthetic machinery, since S. marcescens represents a convenient and tractable producing organism