Thesis (Ph.D.)--Boston University. / The relationship between stimulus discrimination and stimulus generalization has been explored within several different experimental settings. The purpose of the current study was to provide a methodology which would allow for the investigation of the effects of stimulus discrimination training on stimulus generalization in human subjects. In order to evaluate this method as a research technique two features of discrimination training were explored and related to performance in a subsequent test for stimulus discrimination. These were: (1) the amount of learning of a differential discrimination and, (2) the degree of physical separation between the discriminated pair. Ninety-three male and female subjects recruited from the Introductory and Experimental Psychology courses at Boston University participated in this experiment. The stimuli used in this study were selected from the auditory flutter continuum and differed with respect to frequency of auditory pulses per second. This dimension for which control of attendant physical properties, e.g., duration and intensity, is possible. Second, it is a dimension with which the subjects have had little, if any, nonexperimental experience. During discrimination training the onset of a yellow pilot light followed the response to a standard auditory flutter value (S+). No light was presented if he made the response in the presence of a second stimulus (S-). The subject was instructed to make a lever response only in the presence of the stimulus with which the light was associated. For groups differing in amount of discrimination training, the light was paired with 7.0 pulses per second, while no light was presented to responses in the presence of 7.4 pulses per second. In groups for which the S+ to S- separation was varied the light was again paired with 7.0 pulses per second and no light with one of the following: 6.2, 6.6, 7.4, 7.8, or 10.0 pulses per second. In discrimination training the subject was presented with progressively more S- than S+ trials thereby minimizing the expectancy of a fixed ratio of presentations of S+ and S-. Such an expectancy could be a confounding factor in the analysis of the number of responses made during the test for generalization. This procedure, also, permitted a smooth transition from discrimination training to the generalization period. The test for generalization, which was carried out in extinction, followed immediately after the termination of any given stimulus discrimination procedure. Two changes were introduced during the generalization period: (1) in addition to S+ and S-, stimuli from 6.2 - 7.8 pulses per second (in units of .2 pulses per second) were introduced and, (2) the light was no longer paired with responses made to the standard (7.0 pulses per second). The subject was not told of these changes in procedure. The results indicated that as the amount of discrimination learning increased postdiscrimination gradients were systematically reduced to S- and adjacent stimuli, while the point of maximum response frequency was shifted to stimuli to the nondiscriminated sode pf S+. There was a tendency for postdiscrimination gradients to be reduced to the discriminated side of S+ as the S+ to S- separation was decreased. The particular form of the postdiscrimination gradient seemed to depend upon the direction of S- variations, i.e., in units slower than the S+ or faster than the S+. This latter feature was related to the underlying discriminability of the stimuli used to test for generalization. Performance during stimulus discrimination tended to reflect the magnitude of separation between the discriminated pair. [TRUNCATED]

Digitized by Kansas Correctional Industries

I model a hiring process in which a candidate is evaluated sequentially by two agents of a firm. Each agent observes an independent signal of the candidate's productivity. I show that if the second agent values a non-productive attribute of a given candidate, that candidate may be less likely to be hired than a candidate lacking the preferred non-productive attribute due to the first agent adjusting their own quality threshold to compensate. I go on to empirically explore the behavior of prisoners in Oregon based on exogenous shocks to the status quo. These shocks include changes in the generosity of sentence reductions available to certain prisoners and the implementation of a variety of policies that have made it less costly for prisoners to communicate with the outside world. I find that prisoners respond to behavioral reviews with improved behavior on the days immediately before and after a review, but increasing available sentence reductions awarded for good behavior does not reduce misconduct rates among inmates. Furthermore, I find that increasing the ability of prisoners to communicate with friends and family using technology has not led to the decrease in in-person visitation that many have predicted. Instead, total communication seems to have increased in Oregon prisons. Given the extensive literature that suggests increased communication with the outside world reduces a prisoner's likelihood of recidivating, this result may indicate that introducing communication technology and making it more affordable may be a cost effective policy to prevent future crimes. This dissertation includes unpublished co-authored material.

Thesis (M.Ed.)--University of Delaware, 2006. / Principal faculty advisor: Eric Eslinger, School of Education. Includes bibliographical references.

African American underrepresentation in positions of power within the intercollegiate and professional sports hierarchy continues to be a major concern among the media, professional sports organizations, and academic researchers. Although African Americans dominate the rosters of college and professional football teams, they remain grossly underrepresented in the management ranks. In 2002, the NFL designed a diversity plan that is commonly referred to as the "Rooney Rule" in order to increase the recruitment of African-Americans in head coaching positions. This dissertation is based on an examination of the impact of this policy in fostering diversity in NFL hiring patterns for the pre- and post- Rooney Rule eras. The study's objectives were (1) to examine the effectiveness of the Rooney Rule in increasing the hiring of African-American head coaches and (2) to identify and describe the factors and mechanisms that function to either enhance or impede mobility for minority candidates. To achieve these aims data was compiled from a variety of archival sources, including NFL and news media records. Furthermore, an integrative theoretical model was developed to assess the previously overlooked factors, particularly job authority, affecting mobility for minorities. The results revealed that the Rooney Rule has been effective in increasing the number of African-American coaches interviewed and ultimately hired as NFL head coaches. However, it was also found that there are more factors that impede rather than enhance mobility opportunities within the management ranks of the NFL. The integrative theoretical model predicted that race would play a role in a candidate receiving consideration for and being hired for a high authority, high power job. It was concluded that the factor that predicts mobility the most, as assessed by hiring, is authority level; which is the area in which African-Americans are underrepresented, thus leading to decreased chances of being interviewed or hired. Analyses indicated that African-American coaches are found in the less powerful coaching positions, are offered fewer interviews, and are hired less frequently; providing support for the argument that race continues to be important in the connection between leadership and selection for management positions.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2006. / Title from title screen (site viewed on Feb. 5, 2007). PDF text: x, 182 p. UMI publication number: AAT 3216418. Includes bibliographical references. Also available in microfilm and microfiche format.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Rhode Island, 2005. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 125-136).

Wage differentials result from different years of education or experience or size of the firms, and also from other factors that do not have anything to do with the labor characteristics of the individuals. One of these factors is usually gender. The wage differential due to gender, and not to differences in labor characteristics, is called discrimination. The goal of this project is to estimate the evolution of the wages differentials and wage discrimination between males and females in Peru within and between 1997 and 2000, a time of economic recession in Peru. The wages differentials estimations show that all categories of males and females saw their real wages decreased; only blue-collar females saw their real wages increased; the return to the interaction between education and specific experience follow a linear trend. This means that more education and more experience will be rewarded at the same rate at any combination. The wage discrimination estimation shows that there was a small but significant wage discrimination in favor of women in 1997 and it disappeared by 2000. This showed that employers reduced all premiums to their employees during a period of economic recession.

Currently, there is a significant gap in the literature on what Latino students are subjected to at predominately white universities regarding white racism and discrimination. If students of color face racism on university campuses, this could negatively impact their experiences while in college and perhaps the likelihood of their matriculation. This research focuses on whether or not Latino students are being treated differently because of their race, what patterns of discrimination exist for this group, and whether or not regional factors, as well as demographic factors influence these experiences. Feagin’s theory of systemic racism was the guiding framework for this study. According to this perspective, white racism permeates various levels of our society and is a foundational aspect of our country, both historically and contemporarily. Individual actors operate in the context of a system of racism, which occurs at the individual, institutional, and societal levels all at once. This dynamic informs this research. In order to get at the lived experiences of Latino students, qualitative interview methodology was used. Approximately 28 students on three campuses participated in face-to-face, in-depth interviews. Overwhelmingly, students faced various types of discrimination and racism both on and off-campus. This study contributes to the race and education literature by providing an in-depth analysis of how mistreatment based on race plays out for these students on both the individual and institutional level. It also suggests that white racism is still an issue for students of color and that the system of racism can have an impact on their educational experiences. Suggestions are made about how the institution of education could change in order to better suit the needs of its increasingly diverse student population.

The Canadian labour market experienced a considerable decline in the male-female pay gap during years 1988 to 1992. After 1992, however, the gender wage gap decreased only slightly. This paper will study the issue of difference in the explained gender wage gap in both the public and the private sectors and will examine the components of change in the wage gap between 1991 and 1996. We measure and decompose the gender wage differentials into explained and unexplained parts separately for the public and private sectors in Canada for the census years 1991 and 1996, and compare changes in the earnings gap between 1991 and 1996 in both sectors. The analysis is based on Oaxaca decomposition and Juhn-Murphy-Pierce decomposition techniques. <p> Results show that gender wage differentials are present in both sectors, although at a lower level in the public sector than in the private sector. In 1996, 67 percent of the wage gap is attributable to the unexplained part in the public sector, while in the private sector, this figure is 76 percent. Generally, males tend to have higher return to experience and more favorable occupation and industry distributions, which can account for the gender wage gap. Our findings also show that the overall gender wage gap decreases in both the public sector and the private sector between 1991 and 1996. This decrease is mainly attributed to the diminishing of the unexplained portion. In both the public and the private sectors, improvements in womens wage-determining factors and ranking relative to those of men contributed to a narrowing of the gender wage gap.