Graduation date: 1934

This study reports the food habits of Vietnamese college women in association with college life and their cultural background. Their food habits, food associated beliefs, and the influences on their food choices were examined. Interviews, using semi-structured questionnaire, were conducted with 25 Vietnamese college women at Oregon State University. The questionnaire included general and particular food consumption, cooking/eating out practices, and food associated beliefs. The busy schedules of the Vietnamese college students in college life greatly influenced their food choices. They preferred eating the same foods as before college, which were mainly Vietnamese foods. However, they also considered convenience for their food choices since they did not have enough time and/or skills to prepare and eat meals. Generally they kept eating Vietnamese foods, such as rice and Vietnamese flavored dishes; however, they increased eating easy to prepare food, such as pasta, sandwiches, and fast foods in college life, which were not often eaten with their families before college. All of them had rice cookers, chopsticks, and fish sauce, that are substantial for a Vietnamese diet. Their preference of eating Vietnamese foods led to their unique meal patterns. They tended to adjust mealtime in order to eat Vietnamese foods at home and avoided eating meals on campus. Instead, the high frequency of snack consumption was reported. They had strong beliefs that Vietnamese foods were healthy. The Vietnamese foods, which consisted of rice, a wide variety of vegetables, and small amount of meat, tend to be low in fat. It led to avoidance of commercialized low-fat and low-calorie foods. The Vietnamese diet was also believed to be a balanced diet. This was associated with the small credibility of a vegetarian diet in spite of the fact that they considered vegetables played an important role in their diets. Generally they were comfortable to keep eating Vietnamese foods because of their health concerns, as well as their taste preferences. In college life, they consumed some foods that were not Vietnamese and not often eaten with their families before. However, it could be temporary mainly because of their busy schedules. They preferred to eat the same foods as before, if their schedule allowed, and they considered that Vietnamese foods should be eaten as their real meals. / Graduation date: 1999

The purpose of this qualitative study was to learn about the perceptions and experiences of students who graduated with the Associates of Arts/Oregon Transfer (AA/OT) degree. This study answered the following questions: 1) How did the AA/OT degree attainment assist in the overall achievement of goals? 2) How did AA/OT graduates view the transfer process? 3) What factors influenced the transfer process? 4) What was the overall perception of the AA/OT degree? A phenomenological approach was used. Qualitative data were collected through interviews with 18 students who graduated with the AA/OT degree at an urban community college in Oregon. Data analysis occurred through the creation of profiles of the participants and the emergence of themes. As a result of answering the research questions about the experiences of AA/OT graduates, five themes emerged. These included: Theme 1: The AA/OT degree made the transfer process easier and helped students overcome common barriers or obstacles to transfer. Theme 2: AA/OT graduates were frustrated with the academic environment at the community college. Theme 3: AA/OT graduates encountered stigmas associated with community college attendance. Theme 4: Advising and mentoring were crucial to goal attainment. Theme 5: Degree attainment influenced behavior change. This study concluded that articulated degrees can help make the transfer process smoother by freeing students from worrying about how or if their credits will transfer, thus allowing the student more time to concentrate on other aspects of the transfer process. The findings of this study suggest there are advantages to obtaining the Associate degree prior to transfer. / Graduation date: 2004

The purpose of this study was to determine if significant relationships exist among terminal values, demographic variables and health care preferences for information and behavioral involvement for graduate students from the People's Republic of China and Taiwan. The Rokeach Value Survey and the Krantz Health Opinion Survey were used to collect data from graduate students at Oregon State University. The data derived from 161 returned questionnaires (91 from the People's Republic of China and 70 from Taiwan) were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney U test, multiple regression, and the t-test. Results showed subjects from the People's Republic of China and Taiwan differed significantly on two terminal values. Students from the People's Republic of China valued more a comfortable life and a world of beauty than the students from Taiwan. The terminal value of health was ranked in the lower half of the 18 terminal values by both groups of students which contradicts the literature. Respondents from the People's Republic of China had a significantly higher preference for information than Taiwan students who had a significantly higher health care preference for active participation and behavioral involvement. Preferences may be related to the political community and institutional differences in the health care delivery in the two countries. The value for an exciting life and use of a community physician or hospital were significant predictors of a health care preference for information. The values a world of beauty and social recognition were significantly related to a health care preference for behavioral involvement. / Graduation date: 1991

The graduate student experience varies for each individual. While some graduate students decide to continue school after being away from some time, others continue with their studies immediately following the completion of their Bachelor's degree. This decision to continue one's education can be difficult and may require further assistance from the student's peers, faculty members, and student services entities. While the undergraduate student transition has been studied extensively, the graduate student transition has not been studied in as much depth. It was the intent of the researchers conducting this study to research the graduate student experience as it pertains to the graduate student transition at Oregon State University. This research was conducted using a web-based survey which was sent to academic department heads with a letter of recommendation from the Dean of the Graduate School asking them to forward this survey onto their graduate student list-serves. The survey asked students a variety of questions about their overall experience, their relationship with their major professor, their satisfaction levels with services available to them, and also included a few open-ended questions that allowed students to expand on their comments. Approximately 12.6% of the students who received the survey responded and there was about a 5.8% response rate of the entire graduate student population. Although there was a wealth of information gained from the responses, no statistical analysis was conducted nor was a statistical significance determined. The results indicated that a majority of students in most cases were either satisfied or very satisfied with their experiences at Oregon State University. / Graduation date: 2004

This study explored lesbian identity development and the relationship between Oregon State University campus climate as reported by 35 lesbian students. Identity development was measured by using Cass's (1984b) Stage Allocation Measure (SAM) which is a self-select tool for determining stage of lesbian identity development. The SAM was then used to create a three stage identity development model. Herek's (1986) Sexual Orientation Survey (SOS) was used to examine the campus climate as experienced by lesbian students. Findings showed that 63% of the participants felt it was important to disclose their sexual orientation to members of OSU's campus. Yet, 69% of the respondents did not feel comfortable doing so. Also, 51% of the respondents reported fearing for their safety, and because of this, 47% of all respondents modified their behavior. The results of this study indicate there are additional factors that contribute to these findings. For example, 89% of the participants reported hearing disparaging remarks; 94% felt the possibility of harassment, violence or physical attacks was likely; and 91% believed discrimination and unequal treatment towards lesbian, gay or bisexual persons at OSU was very likely. These findings were reported by equal numbers of individuals in each stage of their identity development. The results of this study indicate that lesbian students at OSU suffer from similar negative experiences as students who attended Emory University (1987), Pennsylvania State University (1987), Rutgers University (1987) and Yale University (1986) where the SOS was also used to measure campus climate. Recommendations for changes at Oregon State were creation of a "safe zone" and programs for retention of lesbian students, increasing visibility of the President's Commission on Hate Related Activities, and making the OSU community a safe place for women administrators and faculty role models to come out. Additional research was also recommended to examine the OSU campus climate as experienced by gay male students and lesbian and gay faculty members. / Graduation date: 1998

The purpose of this study was to describe the transitions, support, and current activities of students who completed baccalaureate degrees after completing community college non-transfer degrees. The population was limited to students who earned an associate degree of Applied Science, Science, or General Studies from Oregon community colleges, and who completed a baccalaureate degree from Portland State University. A telephone questionnaire was used to collect descriptive data and anecdotal information. At the time of community college entry, only 15% of participants identified "transfer" as their reason for attendance, yet each participant in this study did go on to transfer and complete a baccalaureate degree. Half began their community college enrollment after age 22 and excluding previous post-secondary education experience took 6-10 years to complete their baccalaureate degree. At the time of this study, a surprising 33% were enrolled in graduate study. Examining the transitions in retrospect from baccalaureate degree completion, the participants relied upon faculty, family, and employment networks to complement their personal goal-strength. In addition, participants identified an initial reliance on student services for information, especially in maximizing credits used in transfer. However, more than half of the participants identified inconsistent information from services and therefore used their support network of faculty, family, and employment members to obtain information relating to academic success, transfer requirements, and degree completion. The study concluded that no educational program is necessarily terminal, that community colleges cannot configure programs that meet all learner needs, and that the availability and quality of information are catalysts for student goal-achievement. The principle implication of this research is that readily accessible and reliable information of the baccalaureate degree structure is essential to students in community college non-transfer associate degrees programs. / Graduation date: 1997

Although the career choice decision for women is recognized as a complex process, there is little understanding about how the influencing factors affect the choices of disadvantaged women returning to community colleges. This study was concerned with understanding how certain factors influenced the career choices of this population. A random sample of 15 subjects was identified for this study from a population of 53 female students attending Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon. The data were gathered through examining the subjects' college student records, interviews and survey questionnaires. The literature suggested that six major factors may influence career choices of women. These are: the environment, the family, individual abilities, self-concept variables, vocational interests and values, and the influence of education. Factors identified in this study which may influence the career choices of disadvantaged women returning to community colleges and provided support for the literature included: high academic ability, a more tolerant and feminist attitude, a sense of independence, interest in planning for a career, and a supportive faculty. In addition, economic security was the most often discussed motivating factor; it had not been previously identified as an influencing factor. Contrary to the literature, the following factors had minor influence on career choices: success in mathematics courses, supportive parents and family, and educational role models. In addition, the absence of a familial value for education was identified. Although it did not appear to impact the subjects' career choices, it appeared to have previously created a barrier to education. / Graduation date: 1992

Graduation date: 1929

This paper provides logit estimates of the probability that students will cheat in a specific class using randomized response and direct question data in two logit models. The results predict that there are several indicators of the probability of cheating occurring in a class. These factors include both student and instructor characteristics. They suggest several steps that can be taken to reduce the incidence of cheating which are relatively inexpensive yet potentially very successful. Further, this study explores the usefulness of the randomized response survey technique in obtaining information about sensitive behavior. Estimates indicate that there are steps that instructors can take to reduce the amount of cheating that takes place in their classes. This study suggests that using multiple versions of each exam, non-multiple choice exams and reducing the weight of each exam score toward the final course grade are all measures which will lower the incidence of academic dishonesty in a class. By allowing a respondent more anonymity the randomized response method encourages more truthful answers than direct questioning. In both models studied here, randomized response yields higher estimates of cheating. The randomized response estimates also appear to be more consistent with previous estimates of cheating than do the direct question estimates. This lends confidence to the conclusion that when surveying respondents about potentially sensitive or threatening information the direct question method yields inaccurate predictions of actual behavior and randomized response is a more appropriate methodology. / Graduation date: 1994