This study tests the usefulness of a measurement of interpersonal cognitive complexity, the Role Category Questionnaire (RCQ, Crockett, 1965), for differentiating between home health aides who demonstrate exemplary versus marginal interpersonally-oriented caregiving skills with elderly and disabled individuals living independently at home. It also advances the literature by exploring whether interpersonal cognitive complexity is related to caregiver skill differences, as opposed simply to communication skills. This research is built upon the interest of an international home health care referral organization in using this instrument in employment screening practices. Furthermore, it is an outgrowth of earlier work with students undergoing nurse aide training, in which this instrument was used to measure estimates of the complexity of students’ interpersonal perceptions of others (Grosch, Medvene, & Wolcott, 2008; Medvene, Grosch, & Swink, 2006). Working with Griswold Special Care staff, caregivers were screened to create exceptional (Category A) versus marginal (Category B) skill categories. Hypothesized was that RCQ measures of interpersonal cognitive complexity among exceptional caregivers would be higher than those of caregivers least recognized by supervisors for care quality. An RCQ-based measure of interpersonal cognitive complexity was taken of 117 caregivers and compared with their categorization to demonstrate a significant relationship between RCQ scores and person centeredness. For non-native English speakers, the hypothesis did not hold true; however, RCQ scores for each category were in the expected direction, and the subsample size was small. A logistic regression model was significant; 65.5% of caregivers were correctly identified in Category B, whereas 61% were correctly placed in Category A. This research adds support for a relationship between RCQ-based measures of interpersonal cognitive complexity and measures of person-centered care among home health care providers. It additionally expands the use of this instrument to non-native English speakers, and it demonstrates that the RCQ can differentiate between exceptional versus marginal caregivers, although there are likely other influences not captured in the predictive model. This study suggests that the RCQ may be used to differentiate between quality and marginal caregivers; however, additional research is needed before considering its endorsement for employment screenings, particularly with respect to non-native English speakers. / Wichita State University, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Dept. of Psychology / Includes bibliographic references (leaves 73-83)

This study investigated how adolescent beliefs and subjective norms towards drugs are related to their self reported drug use. A sample of African American adolescents was recruited from a Midwest community to participate in the Risk Reduction Project. The Risk Reduction Project was designed to build refusal skills and safer sex practices among African American adolescents aged 11-19. This project was a collaborative partnership between a university (Wichita State University) and three community based agencies: Knox Center, a local alcohol and drug treatment facility, the Boys and Girls Club of South Central Kansas, and the Center for Health and Wellness, a primary health care facility. Approximately 309 African American youth completed a 41 item questionnaire that asked about their beliefs, subjective norms towards drugs as well as their intentions to use alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana. The results indicate no significant correlation existed between beliefs and intentions at pre-test, r (289) =.002, p=.97, at the post-intervention, r(84)=.166, p=.28. A significant correlation was found between beliefs and intentions at the three month follow-up, r (154) =.214, p<.01. Significant correlations between the variables subjective norms and intentions at the pre-test measure, r (287) =.636, p<.01, at the post-intervention measure, r(211)=.469, p<.01, and at the three month follow-up, r(159)=.724, p<.01. As intention not to use increased at pre-test, reported drug use behavior at three month follow up decreased. The participants’ self reported beliefs against drug use were not significantly different between the different intervention groups. All groups reported a moderate to strong belief of risk with regard to overall drug use, which was consistent over time. Regardless of their group assignment all participants believed that there are high risks associated substance uses, no one intervention had a more marked effect on the change in subjective norms and all participants reported that they intended not to use. There were differences in subjective norms and intentions between participants reporting previous drug use and those reporting no drug use. Those who reported using drugs previously had a slight increase in reported subjective norms against drug use immediately after the intervention, t(212)=-3.023, p<.01, which subsequently decrease at the three months follow-up, t(161)=8.518, p<.01. It appears that for those participants who reported previous drug use, there was an initial effect for the intervention which was reflected in the post-intervention measures, however these results were not sustained over a three month period. Results indicated that there was a difference between those who reported previous drug use and those who did not use drugs. For those who reported no previous drug use, there was a modest decrease in the intention scores reported by participants. For the measures from pre-test, t(285)=-3.79, p<.01, to three month follow up, t(152)=-8.01, p<.01, both groups expressed a decline in their intentions to not use drugs. Limitations and future research are discussed. / Wichita State University, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Dept. of Psychology / Includes bibliographic references (leaves 44-48)

Teacher isolation continues to be a product of a strong school culture belief system that creates a professional challenge for educators attempting inclusive educational practices, particularly co-teaching partnerships between special education teachers and regular education teachers (Friend & Cook, 2004.) This case study specifically looked to understand how school culture influences co teaching collaboration efforts between a special education teacher and an elementary education teacher (Schein, 2004) where inclusive practices are implemented that have a positive impact on student learning for all students, especially students with disabilities. The study illustrates that it is possible to eliminate a traditional two track educational system between regular education and special education and to create an integrated culture where the two became fused as one. This elementary school was assigned a principal who believed a supportive school culture was best for students, teachers, and support staff and took this opportunity to create a more inclusive and collaborative environment. With the emphasis on inclusion, the principal fostered staff buy-in and established ownership with the staff by helping them focus on how to provide differentiated instruction to all students in regular education classes, including students with disabilities (Zigmond, 2001). In this collaborative school environment, a co-teaching partnership between a special education teacher and a 5th grade elementary teacher is considered to be a successful partnership. Having two highly qualified teachers willing to change how they teach in order to provide differentiated instruction and interventions helps meet the individual needs of the diverse student population in this 5th grade regular education classroom. / Wichita State University, College of Education, Dept. of Educational Leadership / Includes bibliographic references (leaves 134-141)

Every cabin configuration, in all types of aircraft (Transport, General Aviation and Rotorcraft), need to be certified as per the existing Code of Federal Regulation governing that particular type of aircraft. The current practice used to comply with Federal Aviation Regulations (FAR’s) related to aircraft seats and cabin interiors is to conduct full-scale system sled tests. This approach can be expensive and the test results are sensitive to changes in test conditions, such as the sled pulse, dummy calibration, seat belt elongation, etc., resulting in scatter in the results. With the development of the more robust codes for the analytical tools, it should be possible to successfully capture the test conditions by one of these tools and to obtain results which compare favorably with the actual tests results. For Part 25 category of transport aircrafts, 14CFR 25.562 states: “Each seat type design which approved for crew or passenger occupancy during takeoff and landing must successfully complete dynamic tests or be demonstrated by rational analysis based on dynamic tests of a similar type seat, in accordance with each of the following emergency landing conditions” and then the conditions are stated. When these federal regulations were enacted, the ability of analytical tools was limited and there did not exist enough data to show that certification could be performed using analysis. The objectives of this research are to identify the conditions under which a Part 25 type aircraft could be certified by analysis for compliance with the 14 CFR 25.562 regulation, and also to identify the validation criteria when using analytical tools. The validation criteria for the analytical model have been developed based on the scatter that is seen in actual testing. The underlying premise is that the analytical modeling of the testing should be allowed to predict the injury criteria within the same band of scatter as the actual tests. The study develops a validated model and this model is shown to be robust in predicting the protection/injury criteria that the tested configurations offer. Using these validated models, a full factorial design of experiment (DOE) analysis was performed to determine the effect the factors have on the dynamic response of the seat-dummy-restraint-cabin systems. In this study, the factors chosen were the seat cushion type, thickness of the cushion and the rigidity of the seat for the 14 CFR 25.562 Test -1 condition (up test) and the studied response was the resulting lumbar load. For 14 CFR 25.562 Test -2 condition (down test), the studied factors were the seat set back distance, seat belt type, type of bulkhead and the coefficient of friction of the impact surface, while the studied response was the resulting Head injury criteria (HIC) based on the impact of the dummy head with the frontal structure. Guidelines were developed in this study pertaining to the circumstance under which analytical tools could be considered as a valid replacement for the certification testing. Based on the sensitivity study, a new integrated analytical system methodology has been developed that would help the aerospace cabin interior designers in developing crashworthy cabin interiors. A graphical user interface was developed which would help the cabin interior designers to optimize their design by selecting component that would help in minimizing the injury criteria studied. This would reduce the time it takes to design these configurations and would reduce the cost of certification while improving the safety of the flying public. / Wichita State University, College of Engineering, Dept. of Mechanical engineering / Includes bibliographic references (leaves 99-103)

The purpose of this study was to determine if intelligibility ratings of bilingual (Spanish-English) preschool children by unfamiliar listeners are predicted by age, gender, and/or measures of rate of speech, receptive vocabulary, and phonological deviations. A second purpose was to ascertain whether significant differences exist among predictor variables in both Spanish and English. Participants for this study were 60 bilingual preschool children ranging in age from 4:0 (years: months) to 5:10. Unfamiliar listeners rated connected speech samples for each child in both languages using a 5-point Likert scale. A total occurrence of major phonological deviations score was obtained for each child in both languages. In addition, a number of syllables per 30-second connected speech sample provided the means for rate of speech calculations. One bilingual receptive vocabulary score was obtained for both languages. Based on a multiple regression analysis, two significant predictor variables emerged for each language. In English, phonological deviations and vocabulary predicted intelligibility ratings of preschool children. Phonological deviations also predicted intelligibility ratings of preschool children in Spanish, followed by rate. Results of a 2 X 2 X 2 MANOVA revealed significant main effects related to language and age, but not gender. Follow-up univariate analyses revealed that 5-year-old children across the two languages were found to be significantly more intelligible than 4-year-olds. In addition, children were found to speak significantly faster in Spanish than in English and 5-year-old children also were found to speak significantly faster in Spanish than 4-year-olds / Wichita State University, College of Health Professions, Dept. of Communication Sciences and Disorders / Includes bibliographic references (leaves 80-101)

When two logistical decisions of the supply chain namely location (a strategic decision) and routing (a tactical decision) are combined, the location- routing problem (LRP) is formed. LRP deals with simultaneously locating one or more supply facility among a set (or sets) of potential facilities and assigning customers to the selected facility (or facilities). To further improve the operation of the supply chain process, it is presented in this dissertation to integrate inventory control, as another tactical decision, with the LRP. The presented model considers the multi-product network under the fixed- interval inventory policy where stochastic demands represent the customers' requirements. Moreover, the third party logistics allows excess space for selected warehouses if needed. A two phase heuristic simulated annealing is presented as solution methodology. Test problems are designed and solved by the developed algorithm to evaluate the presented solution approach. Results show that the integrated decision leads to saving on the network cost. Furthermore, two case studies are discussed to show how the presented model can be used in practice / Wichita State University, College of Engineering, Dept. of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering / Includes bibliographic references (leaves 128-135)

The methodology proposed in this research extends the current full-scale test approach based on the life factor and the load enhancement factor, and provides information necessary to define inspection intervals for composite structures by studying the effects of extremely improbable, high-energy impact damage. This methodology further extend the current practice during damage-tolerance certification to focus on the most critical damage locations of the structure and interpret the structural and loads details into the most representative repeated load testing in element level to gain information on the residual strength, fatigue sensitivity, inspection methods and inspection intervals during full-scale test substantiation. A reliability approach to determine the inspection intervals to mitigate risks of unexpected failure during the damage tolerance phase, especially with large impact damages, was discussed. This methodology was validated with several full-scale test examples of the Beechcraft Starship forward wings with large impact damages on the front and aft spars. Procedures to generate reliable and economical scatter and load-enhancement factors necessary for a particular structural test by selecting the design details representing the critical areas of the structure is outlined with several examples and case studies. The effects of laminate stacking sequence, test environment, stress ratios, and several design features such as sandwich and bonded joints on the static-strength and fatigue-life shape parameters are discussed with detailed examples. Furthermore, several analytical techniques for obtaining these shape parameters are discussed with examples. Finally, the application of load enhancement factors and life factors for a full-scale test spectrum without adversely affecting the fatigue life and the damage mechanism of the composite structure is discussed. A methodology synthesizing the life factor, load enhancement factor, and damage in composites is proposed to determine the fatigue life of a damage-tolerant composite airframe. This methodology narrows the variability of different aspects of the damaged structure to determine the remaining fatigue life of the structure. In order to prevent unintentional failure of a damaged article during dadt testing, especially when investigating extremely improbable high-energy impact threats that reduce the residual strength of a composite structure to limit load, rigorous inspection intervals are required. The probability of failure of the damaged structure with the enhanced spectrum loads can be evaluated using the proposed cumulative fatigue unreliability model, which was validated through a full-scale test demonstration of a damaged article at the critical load path. Information from this model can be used also to allot economical and reliable inspection intervals during service based on a target reliability and a critical damage threshold. Full-scale dadt test conducted with a visual impact damage on the aft spar (secondary Load path) using the improved lefs based on the design details of Starship forward wing Structure demonstrated the repeated life requirements according the proposed load-life-damage Hybrid approach, and the post-dadt residual strength requirements. The forward-wing dadt test article with a large damage on the front spar (primary load path) demonstrated the capability of the cumulative fatigue unreliability model to predict the damage growth in terms of reliability and the capability of the model to determine the inspection levels. Although it is not a one-to one correlation for the damage propagation or its size, the cumulative fatigue unreliability model highlighted load segments that resulted in gradual progression of local damage, such as possible matrix cracks, and the global impact of high loads that resulted in evident damage growth / Wichita State University, College of Engineering, Dept. of Aerospace Engineering

The goal of this study was to examine the relationship between a change in stereotype rating of photographs and the critical thinking skill of the rater. The groups rated for the study were Black, Middle Eastern/Arab, and Skinhead, each represented by three photographs of male group members. Using an adjective checklist rating system, participants rated a photograph of a member of one of the three groups. The participants were administered the Watson Glaser Critical Thinking Inventory (S) short form, and then presented with a biographical sketch relating to the initial photograph. The sketch was engineered to develop a middle class American identity for the person in the photograph, and the photograph was rated again. Results indicated that providing the biographical sketch significantly lowered the negative stereotype rating of the photograph for the second presentation. Additional analysis identified that a higher critical thinking ability was associated with a lower amount of overall change in the negative stereotype rating score. When the adjectives were separated into positive and negative adjectives, a higher critical thinking score had a stronger association with a change in the positive adjective scores, such that the photograph was viewed as more "likeable" the second time it was presented. Implications of the relationship between critical thinking and improved likeability of negatively stereotyped group members is discussed. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Wichita State University, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Dept. of Psychology / "May 2006." / Includes bibliographic references (leaves 33-41).

The field of multibody simulations has seen great strides in recent years. Most multibody simulations are carried out under the assumption that the joints involved are ideal. However many real joints are not ideal; they possess some clearance between their components. The existence of these clearances allows for the freeflight motion of some of the joint’s constituent components. This motion is usually followed by an impact leading to load amplification and chaotic motion. The effects of impact-induced load amplification could be compounded when the system also contain members or links with some degree of flexibility. This study is an attempt to observe and characterize systems of this nature. The issue of characterizing these systems is addressed incrementally. Initially, a test rig with a clearance or real joint and rigid links is used to gather data on the characteristics of a real system with rigid links and a real joint for various system conditions. The resulting data is analyzed and used to construct a validated analytical model of the same system. This model is then used as a test bed to study the contact and hence the impact process occurring within the joint. This approach allows for various contact models to be evaluated and for a suitable one to be selected or formulated. Once this is done, flexibility is introduced into the study by modifying the test rig to include flexible bodies, and the new data is analyzed for any possible effects brought on by body flexibility. As expected and seen in other previous studies, joint clearance does indeed cause load amplification. Various existing impact models for this joint were studied and none were found to give satisfactory results, so a modified formulation was made and found to produce significantly better results. It was noted that during the impact process, damping, even in very small amounts, plays an important role and may not be ignored safely as is sometimes done. Flexibility in links is found to have an influence on the system’s responses depending on the system configuration, but by and large, it appears to have a deleterious effect. The phrase "flexible body” seems to imply a one-to-one correlation between the stiffness of a body under quasi static conditions and its dynamics in a working mechanism. It would seem from this study that such an assumption is not always true and perhaps a better term would be “real body." / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Wichita State University, College of Engineering, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering / "May 2006." / Includes bibliographic references (leaves 97-101)

Providing reliable, affordable, clean electricity is essential for national economic performance and quality of life. A big challenge facing the electric power industry today is to meet the nation’s energy needs with the least environmental harm that results from electric power plants. The electric power industry is and will continue to be a primary focus of existing and future greenhouse gas (GHG) emission regulations. Different from other air pollutant regulations such as for sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrous oxides (NOx), GHG regulations have the potential to significantly affect electric power system dispatch and operations over a relatively short period, so the implications are significant enough to warrant an in-depth study. This dissertation first discusses climate change and the contribution from the electric power industry. Various climate change policies and corresponding research done in the electric power industry are presented, through which operators, planners, strategists, and investors can better understand the potential impacts of GHG regulations on the electric power industry. Then several primary power system features that will impact CO2 emissions are analyzed in this dissertation, using a simple two-bus two-generator power system. These power system features include CO2 emission factors by type of fuel used to generate power, unit thermal efficiency, regional generation mix, electricity demand, and transmission constraints. This dissertation then develops the CO2 emission-incorporated cost model, which includes a fuel cost function, CO2 emission cost function, and fuel-emission cost function. The implications of CO2 emission cost on generation dispatch related issues, such as generation cost variation and breakeven price of CO2, are studied. Based on the developed CO2 emission incorporated cost model, a powerful CO2 emission-incorporated ac optimal power flow has been formulated in this dissertation. The effects of the CO2 emission-incorporated ac optimal power flow on electric power system dispatch and operations were investigated using the standard IEEE 24-bus reliability test system through several case studies. These case studies consider situations of different fuel prices and different load levels. For each case study, a wide range of CO2 prices were modeled. Finally, in order to meet the annual CO2 emission limits economically, an integer programming based optimization methodology for implementing the proposed CO2 emission incorporated optimal power flow has been developed. The optimization methodology has been verified by various annual CO2 emission caps. / Wichita State University, College of Engineering, Dept. of Electrical and Computer Engineering